Congerton gives vow on stars of tomorrow

football and play in Champions League football,” said Congerton.

“I look at the Celtic team and there’s pace and power in Scott and Moussa Dembele.

“Moussa is rightly getting the headlines but we are always looking to recruit the right player and hopefully they become the superstars of tomorrow.

“That’s what excites me. At Chelsea we signed Scott Sinclair for £200,000 and Ryan Bertrand from Gillingham for £150,000.

“Fabio Borini for €110,000 and Patrick van Aanholt for a few hundred euros and signing him later for Sunderland for £1million and they sold him recently for £14m.

“That’s what motivates me. There’s no correct way in signing a player.

“Talents that can become superstars of tomorrow is what has attracted me to this role and Celtic have done that well over the years. I hope to continue that with the good network we have in place.”

Congerton’s challenge will be to find the next Dembele – and players of his ilk who are capable of playing in the Champions league, but without the kind of budget he would have had previously in his career.

“There’s talent every where,” he said. “Kieran Tierney is a great talent and he’s on our doorstep.

“Our priority is always going to be Glasgow and Scotland but we have to be prepared that there are players anywhere at any time. I like the compensation route that Dembele took.

“That’s quite attractive. But if a player is good enough and within our financial means and fits the profile we are looking for then we will try to get him.

“Scouting is not about I. It’s about the team. I like to smell the grass and see the player.

“That’s the feeling, what I love. It’s my passion. When I watched Son [Heung-Min] for the first time you could see he was an athlete, with right foot, left foot, power.

“It is extremely difficult. But we all love a challenge. It would have been a lot easier for me to go somewhere else because I had other opportunities but actually I am motivated because of that challenge and to work with Brendan again.

“If you don’t like a challenge then you shouldn’t be here or be in football.”