Alistair Johnston believes that Nicolas Kuhn has integrated well into the Celtic team and describes him as a “good boy”.
“He’s actually a pretty quiet guy,” Johnston said, according to the Daily Record. “But he loves to laugh and he’s a nice guy. He’s happy to be there.”
“He has a great relationship with a few of the guys, including Yang. It’s funny to watch them communicating in their broken English. But it’s nice to see things like that and they make a difference on the pitch. And you see it when one of them scores a goal, they celebrate the other one and things like that.
“You can see that there is camaraderie here and that everyone plays for each other. And that’s what you need in such a big club because there will be difficult moments and you have to have that trust and belief that you can rely on everyone who is out there.”
Kuhn joined Celtic in January and made 14 appearances last season, scoring two goals and providing two assists.
Kuhn seemed like a promising player, but fans expected more. It’s safe to say that the German gave them what they wanted this season.
Kuhn has started both competitive matches so far and opened the scoring of the season with Celtic’s third goal against Kilmarnock. He opened the scoring after just three minutes against Hibs at Easter Road. He then assisted Callum McGregor’s wonder strike and returned to Glasgow with another goal and another assist.
“I think he’s definitely more comfortable in his role now,” Johnston explained. “He’s understanding and finding his confidence. We’re putting him in a better position to be the player he is and making him understand that we signed him for what he brings to the game. He’s not afraid to show that.”
And the Celtic full-back can identify Kuhn’s best areas of play, with Johnston highlighting his “directness” and “confidence on the ball” and praising him as a “nightmare in defence”.
He added: “I think he’s really understanding the signals from the wingers now when it comes to asserting himself at the back post and recognising those moments. He’s really stepped up his game and I think that’s going to be a high level that he’ll show all year long.”
In other news, the Scottish champions are reportedly interested in signing another Norwich City attacker.
Jessica Elliott
