BRENDAN RODGERS has made his feelings abundantly clear on whether Celtic should attempt to sign Adam Idah on a permanent contract.
The manager has insisted from the first day of the 23-year-old Republic of Ireland international frontman arriving at the champions in late January that he believed he would be a success at the Hoops.
And Rodgers reinforced his wishes after watching the powerhouse striker claim the only goal of a tense Scottish Cup Final encounter at the weekend.
The beaming boss said: “The board knows how I feel about Adam. That was the reason for bringing him in. He’s been a real catalyst for us, especially over the last few months.
THE VICTOR AND THE VANQUISHED…Adam Idah acknowledges the Celtic fans after netting the Scottish Cup winner while Jack Butland can only look on in disappointment.
“He’s a big-game player. In so many big moments, he’s stepped up to the plate for us. I’m so happy for him. A boy from Ireland, a striker scoring the winning goal in the Scottish Cup Final against Rangers.
“Wow! What a summer he’ll have.
“I don’t know if we’ll get him in the summer, the board will look at it. My talks with Adam will remain private because there’s a lot of work to do. But he knows my feelings and so does the club, so we’ll see what happens.”
Rodgers, speaking to the
Daily Record, continued: “I knew what I was getting with Adam because I’d seen him in the Premier League at 18. He has all the attributes.
“He’s fast, dynamic, strong and I felt with better positioning he’d get goals. What he’s done since coming in is show that he’s a goalscorer.
“He gets different types of goals. He has great movement in the box and he deals with pressure moments.
THE CUP THAT CHEERS…Adam Idah clutches the newly-won silverware.
“Adam’s been absolutely immense for us and he’s clearly someone I’d like to do something with. I just know with Adam that he’s got such a high ceiling.
“Coming to here, he’s thrived on the pressure of being at a big club.”
The double-winning gaffer added: “At Celtic, you learn how to prepare. You can’t have a lazy day here, you’ve got to be on it.
“He’s benefited from that. The environment has made him grow. Adam had to get a feel for us, but I told him he had to be ready to make an impact, either starting or coming on.
“His confidence has never wavered, he’s been a brilliant team player for us.”
CROWNING GLORY…Adam Idah fires Celtic into an early lead against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on their way to a 5-0 triumph and a third successive title.
Idah has claimed nine goals since his short-term loan agreement and has helped remove the burden from Kyogo Furuhashi who hasn’t sparkled with the consistency of the previous two years since his £4.6million recruitment from J-League Vissel Kobe.
The burly Cork-born attacker has given Rodgers another dimension to his forward line and underlined his worth again when he started the match against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park 12 days ago.
The manager was seeking a different approach against a team that had beaten the Hoops twice at the same venue earlier in the campaign and Idah provided the solution.
He got the ball rolling with the opening strike in the fifth minute and the Parkhead men were three goals ahead by the 35th minute and on their way to a 5-0 triumph as they sealed their third successive title.
Click Here for Comments >
