Banter began for Scott before he was even inside the dressing room
SAYS LEIGH GRIFFITHS
THE loud acclaim he received from the stands was only one part of Scott Allan’s welcome to Celtic Park. Crossing the threshold of the dressing room brought a different form of greeting.
If mickey-taking is a sure sign of acceptance in that environment, then Allan is already being made to feel at home.
The 23-year-old was paraded on the Parkhead pitch before watching a victory over Inverness Caley Thistle that often underlined the competition he will face when it comes to securing a creative midfield role.
Given that he was the subject of three unsuccessful bids f rom boyhood f avourites Rangers, Allan’s description of his move to Celtic as a ‘no-brainer’ drew a predictably rapturous response from his new supporters.
And, as Leigh Griffiths later revealed, Allan’s allegiances have also proven manna from heaven for the prime jokers within the champions’ squad.
‘I’m not surprised he got a good reception from the fans,’ insisted Griffiths. ‘Celtic fans will welcome anyone, regardless of who they are or where they came from.
‘It won’t be an issue. It doesn’t matter if you support Rangers or East Stirling. As soon as you pull on that Celtic jersey, the fans will take to you straight away.
‘He wasn’t even in the dressingroom door here and Charlie Mulgrew was winding him up! It will remain behind closed doors but there was great banter from the likes of Charlie and Scott Brown. It was good fun but I’m sure Scott will take it in his stride.’
Griffiths grew up as a Hibs supporter and admitted last week that he hoped Allan would stay in Leith for purely ‘selfish’ reasons.
That was, however, when the Easter Road club were resisting his sale to their main Championship rivals at Ibrox.
The situation changed when Celtic made their move, securing Allan on a four-year contract.
‘ I was talking f rom a Hibs perspective and them getting out of that league,’ reflected Griffiths, grinning. ‘It’s great to have him on board and we’ll welcome him to training on Monday.
‘He’ll want to prove a point. I know him well from the (Scotland) Under- 21 games. He’s a good player who likes to make things happen. He will be a good addition.’
Allan will be added to the available pool f or Wednesday night’s Champions League play- off first leg against Malmo, although Ronny Deila remains unsure as to whether he will have any active part to play.
Certainly, there was little wrong with the forward-thinking aspects of Celtic’s preparation on Saturday. Four goals ahead after 69 minutes, they looked set to record their most comfortable victory of the season to date.
They had been aided by some flimsy resistance from Inverness — still without key defenders — but there was admirable quality in much of their play.
In particular, Stuart Armstrong, who scored twice in the second half, and fit-again captain Brown looked in imperious form.
Mikael Lustig nodded in a Stefan Johansen free-kick for the seventhminute breakthrough before Griffiths headed his fourth of the season not long after. It was a goal created by some exquisite skill from Nir Bitton.
Armstrong’s pair of very smart finishes doubled the advantage and reflected Celtic’s dominance. So far, so bad for the Malmo scouts. But then came the unexpected wobbles.
Brown’s substitution after an hour had drained much of the drive from Deila’s side, but it was a couple of errors from Dedryck Boyata that allowed Inverness — revived by the introduction of Ryan Christie — to recoup some pride.
The Belgian centre- half has largely impressed since his arrival from Manchester City but slipped to allow Christie to be fed in. A very confident strike beyond Craig Gordon eased the deficit.
Seven minutes later, Boyata again conceded possession. Christie picked out fellow substitute Dani Lopez to make it 4-2.
Clearly, such lapses would carry a high price if repeated against Malmo, a point Griffths recognised.
‘We played really well but we gave away a couple of sloppy goals at the end that, by our standards, were very poor,’ he admitted.
‘It is something we will look at in training during the week and make sure we sort it for Wednesday.
‘We proved we can break at pace and we have players who can hurt teams. At 4-0 up, we were looking at going on and winning by five or six.
‘But credit to Inverness. They came back at us in the last half an hour. It’s a warning. If we play like that in the Champions League we will be severely punished.’
Griffiths hopes it will be his job to deliver punishment at the opposite end of the field.
Nadir Ciftci still has another two games of his ban to serve in domestic football, but has started all four of Celtic’s Champions League qualifiers since his arrival from Dundee United.
Griffiths continues to bolster his claim for European inclusion, but insists there will no strop should he find himself on the bench for the visit of the Swedes.
‘You never know if I will get the nod,’ he said. ‘I have done my chances no harm with scoring.
‘It’s all about what the manager thinks on Wednesday afternoon when he names the team.
‘If I am not in it, I will give my full support to Nads. He will no doubt do a job for the team and I will be ready if I am needed to come on.
‘ It’s disappointing when you score a goal and the big games come around and you are on the bench. But I just have to bide my time. If I am involved then great, if not I will support Nads.
‘If I get a chance, I am confident I will put it away. I should have done better with one in the second half but I got one opportunity in the first half and scored with the header.
‘You don’t get many chances in Europe so, if you get one, you need to punish teams. It’s not just me, though, we have a lot of players who can score goals.
‘If a chance comes, I’d back any of them to put it away.’