Liel Abada has claimed, via The Scottish Sun, that Celtic supporters shocked him with the reception they gave Ange Postecoglou’s squad ahead of their Champions League qualifier.
Abada made his Hoops debut on Tuesday night as Celtic hosted Midtjylland in the first-leg of their second round tie. The winger moved to Glasgow from Maccabi Petah Tikva last week for £3.5m, after snubbing interest from France and Belgium.
The Israeli’s Parkhead stay got off to the perfect start, as well, by scoring the opener against Midtjylland. But the Danish side were later able to score a vital equaliser to stay on an even keel heading into the second-leg.
Abada admits Celtic’s supporters had stunned him with the reception Postecoglou’s squad received. He now wants to make them proud, as they gave him the confidence to score.
“When I arrived at Celtic Park on the bus, I was in shock with all the fans outside waiting to support us as we stepped off,” Abada said. “That was a new experience for me, and I hope to make the fans proud.
“It was an unbelievable feeling to start on such a big occasion in front of the fans for Champions League qualification. I was really excited at the beginning of the game. It’s a big stage and an important game for us.
“As soon as the game started and I got on the ball, I gained confidence. The fans gave me a lot of confidence and the players helped me settle and feel confident. That made me feel like I could do something special and I’m really happy I was able to help the team by scoring.”
Minnows to Champions League in a week for Abada at Celtic
Abada went from playing for a minnow of Israeli football in Maccabi Petah Tikva to playing in the Champions League within in a week of being at Celtic. It is no surprise, then, that fans caught him by surprise by delivering a passionate welcome to Postecoglou’s side.
Postecoglou could have been worried that Abada would sink under the pressure, given his shock. But the Greek tactician will instead by delighted to see him swim and score in the 37th minute.
Abada struck a swift rebound into the net to show his alert reactions, and was also often on the move. His intelligent runs and solid positional awareness impressed Chris Sutton, too. He noted on Twitter after the game that Abada was ‘lively’. Now, he needs to keep that up.
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