Monday 4 April 2016 15:25, UK
John Collins has urged on-loan Celtic star Patrick Roberts to aim for the standards set by Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi.
In only his second start for Ronny Deila's side since arriving on an 18-month loan deal from Manchester City in January, the 19-year-old grabbed a double in the 3-1 home win over Hearts on Saturday.
It was the first senior goals scored by the former Fulham player, who moved to the Etihad last summer for a reported £11m fee.
His first goal at 1-1, a little dink over Neil Alexander, was described by former Hoops manager and Sky Sports pundit Neil Lennon as "absolute top class, Messi-esque," while his shot from the edge of the area shortly after the break gave the Hearts keeper no chance.
Ahead of the trip to Dundee on Tuesday night, where the Parkhead men can go back seven points clear of Aberdeen at the top of the table, assistant manager Collins refused to make direct comparisons with the Argentina forward.
He said: "I don't like comparing him to the best player in the world, which in my opinion is Messi. But you can see where people get the resemblances.
"He is left-footed. He likes to take people on and if he ends up half as good as Messi then he has done well. That has got to be his target, to try to emulate what Lionel Messi does week-in, week-out, which is score goals, create chances.
"He is one of those players who gets you on the edge of your seat. When he gets the ball the first thing in his mind is can he take on a defender. He is a type of player I like watching.
"At the end of the day you have to have an end product and at the weekend he had what we are looking for from wide players, beating players and getting shots on target and finishing off with goals. The most important thing is continual progress. He has to produce week in week out, that's what top players do."
Meanwhile, Collins confirmed Derk Boeriggter had been paid up by the club on a contract set to expire in the summer.
The 29-year-old winger was signed from Ajax in July 2013, for a reported fee of £3m but had not made a first team appearance since August, 2014.
"We wish him all the best for the future. Sometimes it doesn't work out and unfortunately for Derk and for us it never worked out for him," he added.
