Giorgos Giakoumakis

There is no doubt when you look at the system that Ange uses you simply have to have both. No way anyone could play in Ange's system and be a success without having the willingness to work very hard off the ball and Giako has shown in abundance that he is willing to work his socks off for the team and put his body physically on the line for the team as well as having a lot of talent especially when it comes to finding the back of the net.

 

The big man will be full of confidence the now and rightly so. He'll score a couple at the weekend.

 

His kind of game on Saturday. Fancy him to nab another 2.

 

Giorgos Giokoumakis has stood by his assertion that Celtic are better than Rangers in every department - but insists he didn’t mean his words to insult anyone.


The Greek forward angered the Ibrox camp following his recent claim, with Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack last week saying the remarks were ‘disrespectful’.

Unapologetic after his team-mates backed up his remarks by winning last Sunday’s derby to go six points clear at the top of the Premiership, Giakoumakis is adamant that he was only expressing his strong belief in the ability of his team-mates.


I didn’t make these comments to make anyone angry or feel disrespected by me,’ he said. ‘I said what I was believing for my team.

I believe this time that we played better as a team, that is the only thing I said.

I can say also now that we play very good football and I believe in my team.

‘Every player can say that his team is the best. I don’t think this is bad. From now on we have to win the games and do our job.’

Giakoumakis has promised Celtic will remain relentless in their quest to regain the title.

Last weekend’s pivotal victory at Ibrox has given the Parkhead club a handsome lead at the summit with just six games remaining.

Coupled with a vastly superior goal difference, Ange Postecoglou’s side have worked their way into a position where they could now afford a stumble and still get over the line.

But ahead of tomorrow’s game with St Johnstone, which could open up a nine-point gap ahead of Rangers’ trip to Paisley on Sunday, the Greek striker is adamant the team will target a maximum 18 points from their remaining games


We know the league is not ever yet. We need to win every single game - that’s our target,’ said the 27-year-old.

‘The target of the team is not just to win the league - it’s to win every single battle from now on until the end.

‘This is our job - to focus on the next game - no matter what the last game we played was and how the big the win was.

‘We always have to focus on the next game and that’s what we are doing now.’

Rangers still have to visit Celtic Park after the split - a game which could see Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side close the gap by three points

Asked if it was now a case of what Celtic did, however Giakoumakis added: ‘Yes, from day one we only had to focus on us and what we will do.

‘We have to win every single game and focus on our game and nothing else.

‘Of course it’s quite a strong position but, as I’ve said before, it’s not over.

‘We have to be focused on every single game as there are more to come until the end.

We have to win every single one. Maybe we have a small advantage but it’s only that - nothing else.

‘We have to protect this and keep winning every game.’

Although reluctant to look forward to facing Rangers at Hampden in the Scottish Cup semi-final a week on Sunday, Giakoumakis says it’s only natural for the squad to be eyeing a Treble after their League Cup triumph last December.

‘Of course I can say that, when you play for Celtic, the target is to win every trophy,’ he said.

‘So we have to fight for it. We have a strong semi-final but, right now, we’re focused on the league because it’s the next game that we have to play.

Next Monday we will prepare for the cup game. Of course this is a club with big targets and it’s something we will fight for.’

Giakoumakis was yesterday named the cinch Premiership player of the month for March after hitting five goals including a hat-trick against Ross County.

‘The award is a really good thing to get,’ he said. ‘I feel good about my football at the moment.

‘The second half of the season has been really good for me. I’m healthy and strong and I’ve tried to give my best on the field.

I’ve scored some goals - 11 so far in the second part of the season - and I’m looking forward to the goals which will follow


















There are still a few chapters to be written in Celtic’s story this season but the main narrative is certain to chronicle an unlikely tale of two strikers.



At McDiarmid Park on Boxing Day, the three points earned by Ange Postecoglou’s hugely-depleted side came at a significant cost.

The sight of Kyogo Furuhashi departing the scene early while clutching his troublesome hamstring was an alarming one for those Celtic fans forced to watch the closed-doors game from afar.

week previously, the Japanese had struck twice as Celtic came from behind to win the Premier Sports Cup against Hibs.

The star man in Postecoglou’s revamped squad was, by common consent, irreplaceable.

At that point in time, the prospect of being without him until April would have been unthinkable. The odds on a six-point deficit being turned into a six-point lead in his absence? Name your price.

Giorgos Giakoumakis had not been spotted in the six weeks prior to that day in Perth. The Greek had scored just once in his eight appearances, with a late missed penalty against Livingston adding to a list of woes including Covid and injuries.




Frankly, there was precious little to suggest he was the man to fill any void.

‘It was a really frustrating time for me,’ Giakoumakis recalled. ‘It was really difficult because I was trying to settle here and adjust to a new environment.

‘I was looking forward to coming here and playing my first games but it was harder than I thought.

‘I had an injury and also Covid so I was sick a couple of times. So it was difficult to get fit and strong and help my team-mates.’

An uncertain start to life in Glasgow tested his resolve. To prevail in such trying moments, players need the unstinting faith of their manager. Postecoglou’s never waned.




Since the first moment I came here and had this hard time, he was always trying to help me and convince me that: “I believe in you”,’ said the striker.

‘He told me just to try to get fit and that I was a really important player for him and the team. That was really important for me.

‘It made me feel good and relaxed. I could focus on my recovery. I worked even harder. That’s why I’m really strong right now.’




With Postecoglou often vague about the timescale for Furuhashi’s recuperation, it was clear the Greek would have to deliver if Celtic were to stay in the title race.

‘I didn’t feel any pressure because I had trust in my ability,’ said Giakoumakis. ‘I knew what I was capable of doing. I had to play my game and be myself and not worry about anything else.’

The tide began to turn with a first-time finish at Alloa in the Scottish Cup, with another goal immediately following against Hearts.




Giakoumakis wasn’t on the score sheet in Celtic’s next four games but his work rate and determination was still noted.

Furuhashi’s name was never far from the lips of fans and journalists but the Greek’s growing influence on the team mitigated against the impact of his fellow striker’s absence.

The Japanese’s likely return against St Johnstone tomorrow is welcome and timely for the team. But the importance of the 11 goals Giakoumakis has scored since he last took the field is lost on no-one.




I think I’m in the best period of my career,’ he said. ‘I hope to keep scoring a lot of goals for Celtic. I will give my best for them and hope to have some successful seasons by winning some trophies. I’m very optimistic.’

At VVV-Venlo last season, the walls of relegation were closing in. Giakoumakis alone couldn’t prevent the minnows from eventually going down, but his 29-goal haul - the highest in the Netherlands - was staggering.

‘It’s a totally different situation to be in, but my job is the same,’ he said. ‘I have to score, I have to give everything in the field to help my team to win. But it’s really nice to fight for winning trophies rather than trying not to get relegated.

‘So, for me, this is something really beautiful and I hope we can win many trophies.’

Last Sunday, Celtic put a couple of fingers on the Premiership trophy with victory over Rangers. The white-hot atmosphere inside Ibrox threatened to consume Celtic early on. Yet Giakoumakis, for one, felt right at home.

‘There are some huge games in Greece - derbies like that where the atmosphere is really crazy,’ he said.


You get it between Olympiakos, AEK Athens, PAOK Salonica and Panathinaikos. They are the four big teams.




But the Old Firm is something special - even bigger. The atmosphere is really crazy. You can see how much people love football here, so I think it’s even bigger here.

‘Those experiences in Greece did prepare me for it. The derbies I’ve played in before made me stronger and gave me focus. On Sunday I had to close my ears and focus on my team.’

Celtic fans now sense they have a real player on their hands. Different in style to Furuhashi but hugely effective.

A win against St Johnstone tomorrow would be another step towards the prize that Giakoumakis and his Parkhead team-mates all want.




There are other reminders of the successes chalked up to date. The spoils from his hat-trick exploits against Dundee and Ross County are never far from view.

‘The balls are in a special room in my house,’ he revealed. ‘My son is already playing with them. I need to hide them because I have some signatures on the balls and I think they will soon disappear.

‘I think he will be football crazy like me. Actually I don’t care about that as I want him to be healthy first of all and do whatever he thinks is going to make him happy.

 

If he scores a couple at the weekend then he could well finish as the leagues top scorer. Imagine that after only starting a handful of games! Will need atleast 7 more I think but the big man will bag a hatty or two before end of season lol.

 

He made that finish look easy, but could easily miss that with how tight the angle is.

Hopefully a precaution and nothing too serious as he’s a massive player for us now.

 

That finish was larsson-esqe

 

Finish was brilliant, just hope this isn’t another bad hamstring injury or that will be him done for the season.

 

Sounds promising enough

 

He should be fine.


Rest up during the week

 

I really hope he's OK. He has been brilliant for us.

 

Hope he is ok/nothing too serious.

One of the major advantages of 5 substitutions is that as soon as a player feels anything, Ange is not risking anything - especially with the depth and options on the bench.

 

His first touch round the keeper, to keep that in the park, it would have been easy to knock it out the park. Then that finish.

For your first goal with more than one touch, what a way to do it.

 

I hope he’s fine, the huns HATE him - players and fans.