Adam Idah

Ooo ah up Idah

 

Young Bots was a watershed moment. Confidence back and we are reaping the rewards. Gauntlet is down to make the position his own. He’s been excellent since that game. If he keeps injury free, we could be onto a winner. His whole demeanour has changed and it’s great to see

 

That and I think being told he'd be trusted to lead the line for the rest of the season.

 

The circumstances which have elevated Adam Idah to the status of Celtic’s No 1 striker remain a matter of some regret for Brendan Rodgers and the club’s supporters.

Pretty much the last man standing up front for the first leg against Bayern Munich following Kyogo Furuhashi’s departure to Rennes, the man from Cork can hardly be held responsible for a failure to land a suitable replacement


Make no mistake, though. With or without the talismanic Japanese, this is how Idah always envisaged it. Anyone believing he was ever happy to be the support act to the star turn at any point was sorely mistaken.



‘That’s why I came to the club,’ he stated. ‘I didn’t come here to sit on the bench and not be out there. I wanted to be the main man.

‘Of course, when Kyogo was here, he was that at the time, and he was unbelievable. He’s gone now, so it’s my responsibility. Hopefully, I can keep that job and keep the No 9 shirt and score as many goals as I can.

‘It’s exciting for me. I’ve probably not really had this in my career yet.’


This burden has weighed down many talented forwards at the club down the years. Scoring goals freely for Celtic has never been simply a matter of ability. Unless the individual is also able to regulate pressure, they’re not normally long for these parts.

Idah believes he’s blessed to have the mentality that’s required to prevail.

‘I’ve been a striker all my life,’ said the 23-year-old. ‘I’ve been scoring goals all my life.

‘I think a lot of people probably overreact to the pressure and the job.


He has already managed to remain unruffled as the doubts of others buffeted him. Having netted against Ross County on November 30, the former Norwich man then went 14 games without a goal.

For many others in his position, that barren run would have seen them in the depths of despair. Idah appears to be cut from different cloth.

‘Everyone seemed to think my confidence was down, but it wasn’t,’ he insisted on the back of hitting four goals in three games.

‘I’ve been through this before and I think some fans are fairly quick to judge players. I think they forget a lot of things and I understand it


I’m a football fan myself and you do get carried away with things. But I think from experiencing this, it’s just doing what you’re good at and to keep working hard.

‘I suppose when I was a bit younger, I would probably struggle a bit.

'Right now, no matter what you do, I think there’s always going to be people that are complaining

I even saw the other day that some people were complaining that I didn’t smile after I scored, so there’s always something


I think as a football player you just have to learn to brush past it and just keep doing what you’re doing.’

That mantra has served him well. A return to the score sheet came with a brilliant double at Villa Park then goals against Motherwell and Dundee.

He’s found his form at just the right moment. While Daizen Maeda is now free to face the Germans after his suspension was reduced on appeal, Idah is still expected to lead the line tomorrow evening.

Unlike some, the forward doesn’t view this tie as some kind of free hit

Having waited 12 years for a knock-out game in the competition, Idah feels Celtic should believe they can extend their journey.

I don’t think the pressure’s off because we’re in the knockout stages of football now,’ he said. ‘I don’t think anyone in the changing room or in this building thinks that we’re going to lose the game or get battered.

‘We want to go there and prove to people why we’re so good and why we’re still in the competition.


The task is unquestionably enormous. Vincent Kompany can unleash attacking intent which is the envy of most sides in the world — Jamal Musiala, Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane. It’s the Englishman who fills his role at the top end of the pitch who Idah admires most, though.

With over 400 goals for clubs and country and almost a goal a game since moving from Tottenham to Bayern Munich in 2023, Harry Kane, at 31, still has few peers across Europe.

‘He’s a world-class striker,’ Idah offered. ‘He’s someone that I looked up to, even when I was younger, for what he did for Tottenham.

'What he’s doing for Bayern Munich now is unbelievable, so it’ll be great to play against him and see what he’s like.

‘I think he’s got a bit of everything. We’ve seen recently he’s the type of striker now that’s dropping in deep and he’s scoring goals from anywhere.


I’ve played against him loads of times before for Norwich when we played Tottenham and then Ireland against England.

‘I got his top. I got Matt Doherty to get that for me, so that’s a big one to have in the closet.’


Idah’s intention is also to have more things in his locker. Last week, former Ireland player Andy Townsend implored him to play up his mean streak. He takes the point in the right spirit.

‘That’s probably one thing that I’ve looked at in the past couple of games, where I probably wasn’t aggressive enough trying to get on the end of the ball when I can get in there for a goal,’ he reflected

If there’s some work that needs to be done, of course, I’ll try and work on it. It’s something that we’ve touched on with the staff, so I’m happy to take all the criticisms and the constructive work.’

There would be no more opportune time for it all to come together than Wednesday. Having stepped out of Furuhashi’s shadows, he feels ready to shine.

‘I think people have seen what I can do in the big games,’ he added.

‘I’m not being arrogant, but I’m confident enough that I can add another level to this team.


‘I know probably people haven’t seen that of me yet, but I believe in myself and I know the staff and the players do as well.

‘So yeah, I’m confident in myself and hopefully I can produce that in the next couple of games

 

Birthday goal incoming tomorrow

 

Best of luck tonight big man

 

Big game for the main man

 

Tough game for the big man. Didn’t do enough for me. Had the weekend off and was pretty much anonymous, didn’t chase enough, waited for everything to happen, only time he showed energy was when we had the ball and needlessly ran offside multiple times.

 

He was alright, but we looked 10 times better when Maeda went to the middle

 

Always a tough ask being the main striker in Europe but thought he done well enough

 

Thought he done well for the most part, strong and linked up pretty well. Not an easy shift though to say the least.

 

Looked about his level just now. Didn't work hard enough for me. Held the ball up a couple of times, but his mentality just seems so fragile.

 

Tough shift for him and unlucky not to win a corner. Thought he could have read that cutback from Engels and sprinted into the space.

 

Maeda caused them far more problems through the middle, easy decision for me, Maeda through the middle every time with Kuhn and Jota wide

 

Thought he did his job well, but aye, we looked miles better when Maeda went through the middle.

 

Maeda made them nervy as * with his pressing , robbed Nauer twice and the CBs weren't as settled at all. Idah can not match that energy or threat .

 

I don't think anyone can match his unlimited energy to be honest. Even if we replaced Kyogo.

 

I think it's harsh to criticise him. Bayern dropped off a bit, their subs changed the game in our favour massively. Maeda's energy was essential but I don't think Idah necessarily did much wrong.