CHRIS SUTTON

in up front in the first one and a lot put on his shoulders in the second one.

Celtic lost both and he was harshly made a scapegoat but I’ve been impressed with his response since.

Neil Lennon had a bit of a pop at him after the Scottish Cup Final over his fitness but you can see the reaction it’s got. Johnston’s taken everything on board and looks determined to become the player everyone has tipped him to be for years.

I like the lad and he has bags of potential but he only started seven games last term and flitted in and out of matches, which tends to be the case with young players.

The great thing for him is having Damien Duff around to help him develop.

I remember Duff coming in to Blackburn as a kid. He was a special talent but we used to butcher him in training!

He took it on the chin and was a resilient lad who went on to have a great career.

He’ll be brilliant for someone like Johnston in steering him on how to make an impact drifting in from the wide areas and you can see it already.

I saw a real determination from him in Sarajevo to take the game by the scruff of the neck. It says a lot Lennon looked to him ahead of Scott Sinclair and it’s clear the manager has faith in him.

The good thing is Johnston is rising to the challenge. It’s early days but Lennon must be delighted – as this lad could save him a fortune.

The Champions League cash is still on the horizon after Tuesday night as well. Lennon would have been delighted.

Sarajevo was probably the toughest first round opponent Celtic have landed in recent years. The tie looked a stinker.

A big crowd in the Balkans, horrible conditions, a ramshackle old stadium – all the ingredients were there for an extremely awkward night.

It looked that way when Celtic chucked in an awful goal from a corner but the response was very positive.

Johnston’s goal was crucial and they saw it out in a very professional manner to pretty much make the return a formality. Johnston was the catalyst and he could be a big player at Parkhead this season.

Unlike Olivier Ntcham who’s talked himself out of the door.