Stefan Johansen last night insisted he is disappointed rather than pleased by Joe Ledley’s departure from Celtic.
Signed for £2 million in mid-January, the Norwegian internationalist has seen his main rival for the left-midfield slot moved on within the space of a couple of weeks.
Hoops boss Neil Lennon rates Ledley, the holder of 50 caps for Wales, and wanted him to stay on. However, with his contract up in the summer, the club felt the £800,000 offer from Crystal Palace was just too good to turn down.
And that should give Johansen a flying start with the transfer offering him a clear run between now and the end of the season. The 23-year-old, though, maintained he is looking at the bigger picture.
“I hoped Joe wouldn’t go because I think he is a fantastic player,” he said. “He is a left-footed, creative midfielder someone I could have learned a lot from.
“It is important to have good competition. If you look at the best teams they have it in every position. I have only been at Celtic a couple of weeks but already I felt Joe was one of our best players.
“That’s the thing for me it’s important to have good competition and he would certainly have given me that. Of course Joe going will improve my chances of playing. That is how football is.
“People leave and people come in, and you’ve got to just take what you have and keep on working hard to get your place in the team.”
Johansen has, meanwhile, shrugged off the notion that his new number has put him under extra pressure.
Lubo Moravcik and Shunsuke Nakamura two Celtic greats of recent years both also played 25, a fact Hoops fans have been quick to note.
“I am on Twitter so I have received a lot of messages about it,” said the Norwegian.
“My number has been on some great players, yes, but it is okay. If you can’t handle the pressure then you should not be a footballer because pressure comes with football and in my case it comes from within. I am going to try to be a great player at Celtic also.”
One player, he says, who has already achieved that status is new team-mate Fraser Forster.
“From what I have seen of him Fraser is a fantastic keeper. Already I would rate him the best keeper I have ever played with. I think he is good enough to go to the World Cup with England and it would surprise me if he doesn’t get selected.”
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