Ukrainian winger keen to build on first Celtic goal

Shved delighted to open account as he seeks first-team place

Marian Shved hopes he has announced himself as a real first-team figure at Celtic following his debut strike in Tallinn on Tuesday night.

The Ukrainian winger was signed last season but immediately farmed back out to his former club Karpaty Lviv.

However, he has made an impression on boss Neil Lennon since checking back into Parkhead this summer and marked his first appearance for the Hoops with a goal as he came off the bench to seal a 7-0 aggregate hammering of Estonian champions Nomme Kalju.

Now the 22-year-old wants more as he aims to make himself a regular feature in Lennon’s line-up.

Shved, speaking after Celtic’s 2-0 win in Tallinn, told the club’s website: “I got my first goal for Celtic and I’m very happy.

“The team played a good game, we played very well. I was also happy to score, having missed my first chance at goal just after coming on.

“But the most important thing is that we played very well against Kalju in Estonia and at Celtic Park last week. It’s a good day, a good game and we can be happy.

“As soon as I connected with the ball I knew I was going to score. It’s a very important goal for me, both in my Celtic career and my career as a whole.

“I was delighted when it hit the net, I think you could see that from my celebration and I love the Celtic fans.

“The manager was pleased with us all after the game and we were pleased with a good win in Estonia and 7-0 on aggregate over both legs.

“Neil Lennon is a very good coach and he’s very good to me as well. No matter the opponent, I hope my first competitive goal for Celtic is the first of many more.”

Lennon admits he has had to tread carefully with the former Sevilla wideman but revealed he has high hopes for Shved.

“Marian has had a nagging injury that has curtailed his progress a little bit, so he’s just been a bit of a slow burner,” Lennon said. “We were anxious to get him some game time tonight and you could see what the goal meant to him from a personal point of view.

“You have to remember how young he is and it will take him some time to settle into a new culture.

“That goal is a great start to his Celtic career.”

Picture: SNS Group. Marian Shved shares a joke with Nir Bitton at training.