Former Celtic midfielder Stefan Johansen has spoken on just how shocked he was upon joining the Hoops in January 2014 - claiming that there 'was only one option' after interest emerged from Parkhead.
Johansen joined Celtic from Norwegian Tippeligaen side Stromsgodset in January 2014 as a 23-year-old, and instantly hit the ground running at Parkhead with a string of impressive performances. 19 goals in 113 appearances followed in the east end of Glasgow over a two-and-a-half-year spell that saw him sweep up three Scottish Premiership titles and a Scottish League Cup.
Prior to his move to Fulham, the Scandinavian star won the Celtic Player of the Year award in 2014/15 to etch his name in Hoops folklore. He has since been promoted to the Premier League twice and made 55 caps in a hugely successful career, though he still looks back strongly on his time under Ronny Deila and Neil Lennon. And speaking to the Celtic View Podcast, he spoke of his shock at realising just how big Celtic were when moving to Glasgow.
Speaking about his time in green and white, Johansen said: "The season finished back home in Norway about November time, and I think we went on a training camp with the national team in Abu Dhabi actually.
"I had a few chats with my agent over the December period and Celtic got mentioned. Me and my wife had a little chat and there was only one real option! Everything went quite quick. I knew Celtic was a big club but then I flew to Glasgow and I realised how big a club it was, because I didn't expect all the cameras, private entrance for the medical and stuff like that. It was a bit shocking but it was brilliant!
"It was a big shock to be honest, obviously the Champions League games and stuff, so you kind of knew it but is a completely different experience when you're there in person. It was a brilliant time; the fans, the city, the players, everyone was so welcoming so it was quite easy to get into the group and I felt at home quite quickly."
Johansen played alongside some top quality players in his time at Parkhead, including the likes of Scott Brown, James Forrest and Mikael Lustig to name but a few. However none have gone on to have the career that Virgil van Dijk has had; with Johansen it was 'only a matter of time' until he tested himself against the best sides in the world.
"Yeah, I think everyone could see it. As a player he was unbelievable and he's progressed since then, but he was a top player already then and it was only a matter of time that he would become one of the best in the world. He's worked hard for it, but the talent, I think everyone can agree they saw that early on with him."
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