MOUSSA DEMBELE is poised to follow in the footsteps of former Celts Shaun Maloney and Aidan McGeady.
The 32-goal hitman has been nominated by his fellow-professionals for awards in the PFA Premiership Player of the Year AND Young Player categories.
And the ex-Parkhead duo achieved the double within two years of each other. Maloney scooped the award in 2005/06 and McGeady did likewise shortly afterwards.
The French Under-21 international striker has taken Scottish football by storm in a sensational debut season after joining the champions from Fulham in the summer.
Dembele, who is facing a fitness fight before the Scottish Cup Final against Aberdeen on May 27 after injuring a hamstring in the 2-0 semi-final victory over Pedro Caixinha’s side, revealed his happiest memory in the hoops.
He said: “My highlight of the season is the hat-trick in the Glasgow derby at the start of the season – that was the beginning of everything.
“I scored a few before that, but that was the best moment for me.”
Dembele ran amok against the Ibrox side in September as he buried a hat-trick behind Wes Foderingham and Stuart Armstrong and Scott Sinclair added the others in a landslide 5-1 romp.
The 20-year-old also claimed the League Cup semi-final winner over the same opposition in October and fired in the equaliser in the 2-1 celebrations in Govan on Hogmanay. The odds on Celtic winning the Scottish Cup as the third leg in the Treble will no doubt shorten if Dembele recovers in time to play.
The powerful frontman added: “This season has been great for me and the team. I’ve enjoyed my first season in Scotland.
“We play well and sometimes we can make the competition look easy, but we work hard every day in training as a team and that shows out on the pitch.
“I think every game you watch, you see a better Celtic.”
