Wrong to think I’d cracked it
Calvin Miller thought he’d cracked it under Brendan Rodgers – but quickly discovered that at Celtic you can never take anything for granted.
The former Parkhead youngster was handed his debut in December 2016, aged just 18.
Despite being a forward as a kid, Rodgers was keen to convert Miller into a left-back as a potential understudy to Kieran Tierney.
In August 2017, he played two games on the trot for the Hoops against Kilmarnock, earning the man of the match award at Rugby Park in a 2-0 victory.
At that point, Miller felt ready to kick on and cement a place in Rodgers’ squad.
But as the Northern Irishman swept all before him as boss, winning two Trebles, Miller found himself out of the picture – and then out on loan.
By the time he returned from Dundee, Rodgers was leaving for Leicester City and the youngster’s Celtic future was up in the air.
He said: “When I made my debut for Celtic I was on such a high. But then I wasn’t involved again for the rest of the season.
“I eventually got back in against Kilmarnock at home in the League Cup and we won 5-0.
“That was midweek and I played again on Saturday at Rugby Park. We won and I got man of the match.
“At that point, I thought: ‘Yes, this is what I want.’
“It felt like that was my time to kick on. But I never played again until six months later. That was tough.
“I was trying to be level-headed but felt I was ready. You need to be playing games consistently to keep up a high standard.
“In my next game we drew with St Johnstone at Parkhead when the manager had made a lot of changes and I barely played again.
“I learned that at Celtic you can never just go through the motions. Standards are so high and everyone is desperate to play games.
“When you’re doing that, nothing else matters.
“Eventually, Brendan wanted me to go on loan to Dundee. He liked how Neil McCann’s team were playing, similar to Celtic’s style.
“Neil loved me but got the sack after a few games.
“When I went back to Celtic, Brendan left and Neil Lennon came in. But I knew I wasn’t going to play.”