Celtic striker Nadir Cifti admits patient approach paying dividends
Thursday 17 December 2015 14:57, UK
Nadir Ciftci says he has not been overawed by playing for Celtic, despite only starting two league games for the Scottish champions.
The Turkish striker joined from Dundee United in the summer but has failed to make much of an impact at Celtic Park since his £1.5m move.
With Leigh Griffiths out injured, the 23-year-old stepped in the lone striker role against St Johnstone at the weekend, scoring twice in a 3-0 victory. And he says he has always known what it takes to play for a club of Celtic's size, despite carrying the extra weight of the famous No 7 shirt.
He said: "I don't think the special jersey puts any extra pressure on me. I know what the expectations are so when you enter the pitch you just need to give everything you can and hopefully they can be pleased.
"It's no surprise. You can imagine what it is. The fans expect every weekend, everything. There is a lot of pressure as well as you have to perform every weekend whether in a European game or in the league.
"I have to be patient, it's a big club, and expectations are high. Every time you go out on the pitch, all they want to see is good performance so hopefully I can keep giving them what I gave last weekend."
Part of the former Dundee United striker's problem has been the imperious form of Leigh Griffiths. The Scot has already scored 19 goals in 29 appearances this season, and with manager Ronny Deila's constant 4-2-3-1 set-up, the likes of Ciftci, Cartlon Cole and Anthony Stokes have found their opportunities limited.
Ciftci said: "He is playing very well, but all the other players have done well when they have stepped in. He's been good yes, but I had a few games suspended so it was a bit hard to get into the team but finally I did a few good jobs at the weekend and hopefully I can keep going from now on."
"It's always good to have competition everyday on the training ground or here at Celtic Park. For every player, if there was nothing to play for or against then you won't get the performances you want."
Ciftci is bracing himself for more regular first-team action with the busy festive period coming up and is keen to make up for their poor results in Europe, and to stretch their lead at the top of the Premiership table.
"Yes it's always a good time," he added. "You get a lot of games in a row. That's one of the things as well, get the wins and get the points and then see what happens with other teams. But we need to concentrate on our own stuff, like last Sunday how we played, keep things going like that."
Watch Nadir Ciftci's Celtic take on current third placed Hearts Live on Sky Sports 1, Sunday the 27th December.
