Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Bhoy Duffer is now the man
JASON MCATEER watched Damien Duff thrive under the pressure of starring on the biggest stage of all with Ireland in the World Cup.
And he reckons his former international team-mate will be relishing the intensity of an Old Firm title battle from the Celtic dug-out.
Duff, 40, enjoyed the quickest of promotions to the Hoops first team set-up when he was elevated from the reserve set-up after a coaching reshuffle when Brendan Rodgers left.
And Mcateer insists helping Neil Lennon’s men win nine-in-a-row will mean more to him as it’s with his Bhoyhood heroes.
Mcateer said: “We’ve all handled pressure like that all our careers. We’ve played in World Cups together, played in big games.
“But you want that pressure if you work in football. You need pressure to drive you on. If Duffer didn’t feel the pressure, it would be a bad thing.
“But he’s at a massive football club, he’s under a good manager in Lenny and he’ll learn a lot from him.”
Duff was regularly linked with a move to Celtic as a player but it didn’t come off and Mcateer believes he’s now doing the next best thing.
The 48-year-old Scouser added: “When you are a fan of that club, it’s not that you give more but it feels different. You feel what the fans feel because you’ve stood on the terraces and know what it means. Damien will feel that with Celtic.
“He has been thrown in at the deep end but he’s got the temperament and mentality to thrive. He was always quiet, never lost his temper when he was playing, he’s very likeable and knowledgeable as well.”