The 3 'top Celtic' stars Motherwell man is well aware of as ace aims to show what he's made of
The Australian international has namechecked three Celtic players who have impressed him the most
Apostolos Stamatelopoulos has namechecked three Celtic stars that his Motherwell team mates must be wary of heading into Sunday’s Premiership clash at Fir Park.
The Australian international - who received his first senior call-up to the Socceroos national team squad by new head coach Tony Popovic in the summer after overcoming an injury-hit start to his career with the Steelmen, is well aware of the threat posed by the Hoops’ Japanese trio of Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi - something he experienced first hand during the recent international break.
Stamatelopoulos was named on the bench for the Aussie’s 1-1 draw in a World Cup qualifier against Japan earlier this month and while Hatate and Maeda was also unused substitutes, he knows exactly how much quality they possess ahead of this weekend’s showdown in North Lanarkshire.
“Probably the Japanese boys,” he admitted when asked which Celtic players have impressed him most this season. “Obviously, I’ve played against them, sat on the bench and saw the quality that their national team has. Maeda, Hatate and Kyogo, I think they’re all top players.”
The 25-year-old striker is determined to make a name for himself in Scotland after his first Motherwell start was curtailed by a quad injury back in August. which ruled him out of action for up to six weeks. However, the former Newcastle Jets star got off the mark for his new club against Hibs at Easter Road earlier this month and hopes a consistent run of games in manager Stuart Kettlewell’s starting XI will bring out the best in him going forward.
He declared: “These next few weeks for me are vital, especially knowing myself as a player. Getting consistency is going to be the thing where I feel like I can show everyone my best. Once I get a run of games, I think I will start to perform at a high level.
“Last year, I guess you could say I was a bit of a late bloomer. It was the first time I put together three or four games in a row and I was able to show what I could do. I feel like this season is going to be the same. Get a run of games and show everyone in Scottish football what I can do.
“Of course, it’s a big game for everyone but like I said you want to perform at this level, not only against these big teams but every single week. You don’t win games by beating big teams or putting in good performances against big games. You have to do it every single week.”
Stamatelopoulos revealed the timing of his injury setback within a matter of weeks after joining the club was a bitter blow, but he confessed the club’s lengthy injury list during the first two months of the campaign actually helped him settle into his new surroundings much quicker.
“It was difficult but at the end of the day it’s football,” he said. “It’s what I signed up for, I didn’t sign up to get injured but it’s part and parcel of the game and these things happen. You just have to push through. Being injured, you’re in here a lot more than what you would be if you are fit. So I was around the boys a lot more, it was a good time to settle in and get used to everyone. It’s a very good changing room.”