I WILL PAY BACK ANGE’S TRUST IN GOALS

GIAKOUMAKIS VOWS TO DELIVER AS GREEK TAKES CENTRE STAGE

GIORGOS Giakoumakis didn’t lose faith. Difficult days may have marked the start of his Celtic career, but the support of Ange Postecoglou remained a constant reassurance to the Greek striker.

If that has left a debt, then Giakoumakis hopes to repay it through goals and proving precisely why £2.5million was paid to sign him last summer.

It’s a process now getting underway. With Kyogo Furuhashi and Daizen Maeda both unavailable, Giakoumakis has stepped forward to score against both Alloa and Hearts.

This afternoon’s meeting with Dundee United provides another opportunity to impress. Then comes the acid test for any Celtic frontman. Giakoumakis is likely to lead the line when Rangers visit next Wednesday night for an Old Firm derby which could have major implications in the Premiership title race.

Such a stage seemed distant when the 27-year-old first pitched up at Parkhead.

He arrived having been top scorer in the Eredivisie despite VVV Venlo’s relegation, yet any hope of sustaining that personal momentum was soon lost.

A disrupted pre-season meant he had to slowly build up his fitness. He scored on his first start against St Johnstone last October, but missed a late penalty against Livingston later that month as Celtic dropped points at home.

More ill fortune followed when a knee injury sustained in November kept him out until the winter break.

Throughout all those issues, Postecoglou made Giakoumakis feel as though he still mattered. That backing was greatly appreciated.

‘He was really important for me since the first day I arrived in Glasgow,’ admitted the striker.

‘He was really patient with me and my injuries, and he was always saying to me: “I really believe in you, I’m waiting for you, try to get fit”. That was really important for me. It made me more determined.

‘Every player needs to feel important in the squad when he’s not in the team, so it was something that helped me a lot, a manager that made me feel important even when I wasn’t playing and when I was injured.

‘That really gave me motivation to work even more and work harder to gain my fitness back.’

His hope now is that both Postecoglou and the Celtic support are seeing what he can bring to the team. A cute finish against Hearts didn’t suggest a player struggling for confidence.

‘Of course, I have to be myself,’ Giakoumakis continued. ‘First of all, I have to help the team and be there for the team. But I really wanted to show the fans what type of player I am.

‘I am a striker, so of course my job is to score. Well, one of my jobs is to score, but I also have to work hard for the team and it is something the fans will see from me. As long as I am fit and strong, they will see the real me.

‘It was quite difficult for me at the start, because from the first days you try to adjust to the new environment and you want to be with the squad to get to know your team-mates and get some games.

‘You have to get to know them well — and know them better on the pitch, too.

‘It was really difficult for me because before I even started playing I was injured twice, and I didn’t have the chance to play with my team-mates and let them get to know the style of my play, or try to score some goals. I hope that this belongs in the past and I can move on.’

Giakoumakis used the winter break for some additional intensive training alongside Christopher Jullien and James Forrest.

‘Yeah, I missed pre-season so already it was really difficult for me,’ he reflected. ‘I had to work more even before the injuries, so you can imagine after the injuries how much I had to work.

‘Even when the players got the week off I knew I had to stay back. It felt like a mini pre-season, and it’s something I had to do. That’s why I now feel fit and strong.’

That condition is all the more vital to Celtic while Furuhashi is sidelined by a hamstring injury and Maeda is with Japan. Asked if he had shown Postecoglou he could be trusted to deliver, Giakoumakis replied: ‘I don’t think he has ever not trusted me, it was just because of the injuries I didn’t play too much.

‘The target for me since the day I came here was to be one of the main players in the squad.

‘The expectations were high but that’s why I work hard to improve myself every single day.’

So does he think he can be the main striker even when the Japanese pair are both available?

‘Yes, I just need to be myself,’ he responded.

Giakoumakis wasn’t short of an opinion after last weekend’s bruising Scottish Cup win over Alloa, branding the approach of Barry Ferguson’s side ‘dangerous’

and drawing a response from the ex-Rangers captain. However, he stresses those words don’t mean he is unduly bothered by the more physical brand of defending that can be found in Scotland.

‘it’s exactly as i thought it would be, the exact same style as i thought they would play,’ he said.

‘it’s tough, they are strong and there are a lot of duels. it is a physical style of play.

‘But i have now adjusted and i feel okay. i don’t mind the duels and i will run to the end.

‘it’s one of my strengths to give 100 per cent of myself in every game, whether that is in duels or in pressing high. that’s something that doesn’t worry me.

‘For sure, we have a difficult programme and a long month ahead, but i will try to recover fast and be there for the team every few days.’