Celtic defender Kristoffer Ajer will never forget his Norway debut

Kristoffer Ajer has a bright future in international football, as well as the domestic scene, after making the breakthrough with Norway.

The Celtic defender made his debut last week against Australia, wearing a jersey with the name of his late grandfather Albjorn Vassbakk on his back, then kept his place for the next match against Albania.

“I was pleased to play both games, I didn’t believe I would play so much on my first time away with the national side,” said Ajer.

“This was my first time playing for the first team.

“It was quite a big thing as I am only 19.

“What made me even happier was that we got two really positive results, after quite a bad period for the national team.

“Beating Australia 4-1 was a massive result for us and, in my opinion, we should have beaten Albania by more than 1-0, because we performed really well.

“Coach Lars Lagerback was positive towards me afterwards, which was also good.

“He has a lot of experience from all these big tournaments and he suits Norway well.

“We have a good squad, but maybe not the top individual players.

“Structurally, we need to be really good and he will help us with that.”

It was the fact he got the chance to honour the memory of his grandfather, though, which will remain his abiding memory.

“I made a deal with him before he passed away, so it meant a lot to me and my whole family,” he said.

“He wasn’t a player himself, but he followed football and supported me the whole way.

“I spoke to him almost every day.

“I had my grandmother watching the game from the stand, so it was a great experience.

“My mother knew I was going to do it, and I gave the strip to my grandmother so she was happy.

“It added to the emotion. And pulling on the strip with both surnames added to that.”

Ajer, meanwhile, took the chance to thank all the coaches who played a part in helping him achieve one of his greatest ambitions.

He said: “Kolo Toure and John Kennedy were centre-halves, so they have been a big help with things specific to the positioning.

“I need to learn from the experienced guys here – both those who played before and those still playing.

“The last year has been the time I have developed the most as a player.

“The six months I spent at Kilmarnock were really beneficial for me.

“I have to thank them a lot for taking me and helping me develop, get games and then come back here.”

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