New Celtic loan signing Charly Musonda was surprised at how loud Celtic Park was during his debut against Hearts.
The 21-year-old Belgian came on as a second half substitute for James Forrest in the 3-1 victory less than 24 hours after finalising his 18-month loan from Chelsea.
And despite hearing about the famous atmosphere, the attacking midfielder, who will wear number 67, was blown away by his reception.
He said: “My debut was great and it was an amazing experience to play for the first time at Celtic Park.
“I got a wonderful reception, I didn’t think it was going to be that loud, so yeah I look forward to playing more games there.
“It was very loud, I really didn’t expected that, it was great from the fans and show much they care about me already.
“To be fair the crowd in Betis was very good as well but nothing compares to what I experienced here against Hearts, it was really unbelievable to get such a good reception on my first game.”
Musonda gave the fans a glimpse of what to expect for the next 18 months with a few tricks and flicks in his cameo role as Celtic moved 14 points clear at the top of the table.
The Belgium under 21 international, who spent last season on loan at Real Betis in Spain, was drawn to the Scottish champions by their need to win every game and manager Brendan Rodgers’ record of working with young players.
He continued: “Celtic is the right team for me because clearly it is a team that always needs to win, and me as a youngster coming through at Chelsea I need that pressure.
“We also have a manager here who has developed a lot of good players so yeah I think it is perfect for me, it is a massive club and a really good manager as well.
“Once I heard that Brendan Rodgers wanted me at Celtic, it was a no brainer.
“It was quite important as I know how good he has been with young players and once I spoke to him I knew I wanted to come here.”
It was reported that the Chelsea youngster was wanted by no fewer than 24 clubs before deciding to opt for Celtic.
He said: “I am not quite sure what other clubs wanted me, there was other clubs of course but I am here now and that is the most important thing.
“I was almost going to come to Celtic last season, but that didn’t happen for various reasons and when the manager came back in for me this window I know straight away as soon I spoke to him that I wanted to come here.
“To be able to play for a club like Celtic at 21-years-old is a dream for me and I am very happy to be here.
“I am sure I am going to enjoy my 18-months here, we have to play to win every game and the fans are unbelievable.
“I am very happy to be here and not looking to other clubs that wanted me or where I could have gone, the most important thing for me is to enjoy football.
“I am going to mature as a player and enjoy the experience- I am 100% sure of this.”
Musonda, who has made seven appearances for the Chelsea first team scoring 1 goal, was greeted by the friendly face of fellow countryman Dedrick Boyata at Celtic.
Boyata, who grew up in the same neighbourhood as Musonda, came over to greet the youngster when he made his Celtic Park bow on Tuesday.
Musonda said: “I have known him (Boyata) since we played together when I was 13 or 14 in the off season when he was at Manchester City-as we came from the same neighbourhood and played a lot of football together when he would come back home, so I am happy he is here as well.”
The upcoming Europa League clash with Zenit St Petersburg and potential Champions League qualification next season also played a part in securing the highly-rated talent until the end of 2018/19.
He said: “Of course that played a part in me wanting to come here, like I have said Celtic is a massive club and they play big games and the bigger the game the better it is for players like me.
“I enjoy playing in these special games so yeah I am looking forward to being part of the team for the Europa League games, it will be exciting obviously I got a taste yesterday of what the fans are like.
“It will be exciting to be part of the European competition and hopefully we can do well this season and next season.”
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