Ange Postecoglou is delighted to see exciting new recruits such as Alexandro Bernabei and Sead Haksabanovic take flight.
And the Celtic boss always knew it would happen because he didn’t have to drag them off aeroplanes and plunge them immediately on to football pitches. Unlike last season where he was forced to haul new faces off through passport control and straight into his team, Postecoglou has been able to take time with this term’s latest arrivals.
With established stars already in place, the manager has been able to give the likes of Bernabei, Haksabanovic and Aaron Mooy time. The benefits seem clear. The trio were all hugely impressive against Hibs last weekend and Postecoglou said: “Because of what happened last year, people probably expected us to throw new signings in straight off the plane again. But this season that was never the plan. I wanted to make sure we bedded them in properly, particularly Alexandro. The young Argentine has been outstanding in his two Premiership starts and the boss continued: “He is one we are really excited about.
“He is 21, it’s his first time out of Argentina and I didn’t want to throw him in and overwhelm him immediately. We see a really bright future for him and we wanted to integrate him slowly. Alexandro wants to learn and he has a real appetite for improvement. We have been able to be measured, but there was never any doubt in my mind that he could make an impact and you will see that from now on.
“We have also had the luxury of not needing to throw him in, as Greg Taylor has had an outstanding season. We have been able to ease Alexandro in gradually. I wanted to give him time because it is a big change for him, even with the language. That would be a challenge for any young player coming over. If you throw him into a competitive environment it can be a sink or swim scenario. I didn’t see the need to do that. I felt it was better to get him in gradually and you can see him getting better in training all the time.
“He has the respect of his team-mates and he has improved with every game he has played. We still have 28 league games plus cups to go, so Alexandro will play his part. He has a couple of assists in his last two games and that was part of the attraction with Alexandro. He is exciting going forward and in the modern game, if you can get defensive players with good attacking outputs, they are great assets. We certainly saw that when we scouted Alexandro and we knew that he could be good for us going forward, but he’s also improving the defensive side of his game.
“We have worked closely with him and he’s taking it all on board. We are probably the least surprised by how played against Hibs. He’s only a young guy and there is more to come.”
Haksabanovic has also sparkled in recent weeks with the Montengrin’s qualities clear. Again, Postecoglou could take his time after sealing the late-window transfer from Rubin Kazan and he explained: “Sead is doing well. We have had the luxury of being able to ease him in.
“He is building his fitness up and getting an understanding of our game, but he’s a good footballer. We are really happy to have him and we are excited to see what he can bring. Sead is still only 23, so we were happy to get him. The best is yet to come from him. Absolutely.
“That was one of the attractions for us when he signed him. We saw a player who had a great deal of experience, but in terms of his age profile and where is at in his career, there is still plenty more in him. The added bonus with Sead is that he can play two or three positions. We felt we needed a player like that and we are pleased with his progress, but we also know there is more to come.”
Celtic had to be patient to secure Haksabanovic’s signature and Postecoglou added: “There are always challenges when doing these things, but Michael Nicholson and the rest of the guys worked hard to get it done.
It wasn’t an easy deal to get it done in the current climate but from my first discussion with Sead, I knew he was all in. He definitely wanted to come and, when you get that vibe from a player, there is always a good chance the deal will get done.”
Oliver Abildgaard also arrived from the Russians and, along with Mooy, has added depth to the midfield. Time has again been an ally as Postecoglou said: “I never expected guys like Aaron and Oliver to come in without a pre-season and be ready to go.
“There was always going to be a period of time for them to get ready. Aaron missed pre-season but he also hadn’t played a competitive club match since January. The only competitive games had been with Australia, so it was totally different for him, especially with how we want to play.
“We knew it would take time for Aaron but I know the player well, and I know the person. I was always confident he would find his feet from a physical perspective. The talent is there and the technical ability is there, so he just had to get up to speed. Aaron will be a big contributor for us.”
