Celtic right back Josip Juranovic has been talking to the media back in his homeland about how his dream of playing in the Champions League is driving him towards success at Celtic.
The Croatian international has been a revelation this season at Paradise since signing from Polish side Legia Warsaw during the summer, first being utilised in the unfamiliar left back position as cover for the injured Greg Taylor before finally winning the battle with Anthony Ralston to be regarded as Celtic’s first choice right back.
I have often compared the 26 year old to Mikael Lustig due to the fact that he is one of those players whose performance levels rarely dip. You can always rely on him to put a good shift in and is as comfortable going forward as he is carrying out his defensive duties. Even during last week’s Glasgow Derby where he uncharacteristically looked shaky initially, he turned it around and ended up putting a good performance in overall.
Speaking to novatv about his future ambitions, Juranovic said:
“I want to play in the Champions League, to finally hear the anthem of the Champions League. I will do my best to stay first on the ladder and finally play where we all want to be.”
Juranovic was an important part of Celtic’s crucial victory at Ibrox on Sunday, showing his versatility once again when moving to left back in the second half after Greg Taylor had to be substituted due to injury. He will once again be pitted against theRangers on Easter Sunday in the Scottish Cup semi final at Hampden, as Celtic hope to defeat their city rivals and maintain their hopes of completing an incredible treble in Ange Postecoglou’s first season managing at Parkhead.
Hampden holds nothing but good memories for Juranovic as he played there for the Croatia side that defeated Scotland at Euro 2020 and has also claimed victories there against St Johnstone and Hibs in the Premier Sports Cup earlier in the season. He added:
“We are playing against Rangers at Hampden. It will be a good experience for the future. I have good memories from that field, so I hope that he will continue to serve me.”
Juranovic’s form in his first season at Parkhead has unsurprisingly led to the full back attracting admirers at clubs down south, with former Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers at Leicester supposedly being one of those suitors. The Croatian has progressed rapidly these past few years going from Hajduk Split, to Legia Warsaw and finally on to Celtic, all in the space of just a few seasons.
Regarding the rumours linking him with cash rich leagues such as the Premier League, he simply said:
“I like such stories.”
Most players at Celtic probably have ambitions of moving on at some stage in the future and with the money on offer, especially in the Premier League, you can’t really blame them. The most important thing is that Celtic get a good few years out of them before making as much money as possible out of any potential transfer. It’s a model that has worked so well for us in the past.
On the opposite side, last year proved what can happen if you hold on to players who would rather be somewhere else for too long. There is no chance of that happening under Ange Postecoglou who is strong in his belief that if you don’t want to be at the club, then away you go.
I have a feeling Josip Juranovic will be here for a good few years anyway, and if he keeps performing the way he has been then he wil depart with nothing but good wishes from the Celtic faithful.
Conall McGinty
He beat listen to Zadoc the Priest at away grounds then cos he’ll never hear it at CP coz our fans drown it out every time #HH