Andy Halliday has told Clyde Superscoreboard that he is “gutted” Celtic have completed a move to sign Alistair Johnston, claiming that he told his brother before his move to Celtic that he was impressed by his World Cup displays.
Johnston, 24, joins Celtic for a fee of £3million. It comes after a wonderful 2022 campaign for the Canadian outfit, in which he had a hand in eight goals during 39 appearances for the MLS side. Now, he has moved to Glasgow.
With Josip Juranovic, now a World Cup semi-finalist, expected to be on his way in the next month or two, Johnston is his replacement. The move to Celtic was confirmed when Johnston and Canada were knocked out of the World Cup.
Indeed, he impressed at the World Cup. Ex-Ibrox star and Rangers-supporting Hearts midfielder Halliday said he was “gutted” to see Celtic sign him. That is, having been impressed by Johnston’s performances at the World Cup in Qatar.
“Me and my brother play this game where every time there’s an international competition, we guess 10 players that will get a big-money move. They’ll go to bigger clubs based on their World Cup performances alone.
“I messaged my wee brother saying, ‘who’s this for Canada?’ So athletic, strong, the way he uses his body. I messaged my brother, ‘he’s signing for a club’. To my disgust, the next day, he’s linked with Celtic. Honestly, I was gutted.”
Halliday gutted Celtic have completed move to sign Johnston
He looks an exciting addition at Parkhead. To get a player that was easily mixing it with the likes of Tottenham’s Ivan Perisic, Belgium’s Eden Hazard and Yannick Carrasco and Morocco’s Hakim Ziyech – for £3m – is very impressive.
Is he good enough to replace Juranovic? Johnston is certainly showing the signs that he can do. To make Halliday gutted that Celtic – his old club’s biggest rivals – sign him, is impressive. Perhaps, a real gem is on his way to Celtic.
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