He may have left him feeling ‘starstruck’, but Odin Thiago Holm admits he can’t wait to play under Brendan Rodgers.
The 21-year-old Norwegian became the new Celtic manager’s first signing of the summer last month, completing a £1.5million move from Valerenga. Joining his new team-mates for pre-season at Lennoxtown on Monday, he’s set to fill the midfield void left by Aaron Mooy’s retirement.
Holm had been on Celtic’s recruitment radar for some time and Rodgers was only too happy to sign off on the deal after replacing Ange Postecoglou. The youngster knows he’s now working under a manager of considerable pedigree, and admitted his presence had him feeling a little daunted.
But it has only made him even more determined to show Rodgers what he can do, insisting he wants to make an attacking impact in the number eight and ten positions this season.
“His CV is very nice,” Holm said of Rodgers on Celtic TV. “He’s managed Celtic before, and also at Liverpool, Swansea and Leicester. You get a bit starstruck at first but I’m really looking forward to working with a manager of that size.
“I think I’m a creative player who likes a bit of freedom to play on my instincts, [to make] the final pass, score goals, assists. I want to play more as a number eight or number 10, offensively.
“I’m really excited to start pre-season. It’s a month and then the season starts, so I’m really excited to play for the fans.”
Holm revealed he didn’t think twice when Celtic came calling. He is under no illusion as to the scale of the stage his stepping on to, acknowledging the step up in expectation and the size of Celtic’s following. He was keen to have the transfer signed off as quickly as possible, and has now set his sights on making a Champions League debut.
“It feels very nice,” he said. “It’s a really big club, I don’t think the people in Norway understand how big the club is.
“Valerenga are a club from the capital who have 10,000 [fans] each game, but here we have 60,000. It’s a really big step.
“I didn’t really think, I just wanted to leave as soon as possible. It’s Champions League, you play to win every game, it’s a big club.”
The Champions League was a huge draw for the Norway youth international. It’s well known by that he changed his middle name by deed poll to honour his footballing idol, Liverpool’s Thiago Alcantara, and has aspirations of making his own mark on the biggest stage. Holm has taken in European nights at Barcelona and at Liverpool, and now he’s excited to see what Celtic Park has to offer under the lights.
“Of course I’m excited,” he said. “I’ve been at two [Champions League] games, in Barcelona and at a Liverpool game. You can’t describe the feeling of 60,000 people screaming, it’s fantastic.
“It’s not going to be easy but I want to perform and be part of the first XI after some time.”
