MOUSSA DEMBELE shrugged off all the ill-informed reports of a £40million January move to Chelsea to focus on the job at hand – which was bad news for St Johnstone yesterday.
The French striker came off the substitutes’ bench with 31 minutes to go and the Hoops trailing 2-1 in Perth.
Dembele blitzed in a hat-trick to take his season’s goal tally to 23 – and then revealed he couldn’t be more delighted to be a Hoops player.
The 20-year-old powerhouse said: “I feel good about the performance, especially the team aspect. We showed we are strong together and won the game, so we’re happy.
“There has been speculation in the last six months and I don’t really listen to what has been said about me.
“I don’t really listen to what has been said in the media, I don’t really follow it. I just try to do my best when I’m out on the pitch and show everyone the level of how good I am.
“It’s easy not to get distracted. I’m a very calm kind of guy and I don’t really let this type of thing get in my head.
“I focus only on enjoying my football at Celtic and I’m very happy to be here.
“It is flattering and it motivates me to keep doing well. I’m happy to be here and I hope to be here as long as I can.”
Dembele missed the wins over Hearts and Aberdeen with a knee problem, but there were no signs of the injury at McDiarmid Park.
The frontman confirmed the penalty conversion was his first touch of the ball and admitted: “Was there pressure? Yes. I’m a striker, so I’m used to it and when I get the chance I’m confident of scoring because it is what I have been doing all my life.”
With 14 league games to go and as many as four in the Scottish Cup, it seems as though it is only a matter of time before Dembele passes the 30-goal mark.
He added: “My target is in my head and I’m not telling you about it, but I’ll try to go beyond the target I have.”
