Celtic have quite a stacked squad at this point of time, with the Hoops continuously strengthening following the appointment of Ange Postecoglou, keen not to repeat the disaster that was the 2020/21 campaign. At the same time though, that has also meant that there are a number of players who have found playing time harder to come by and some of them have gone out on loan in search of regular minutes.
One such player is Mikey Johnston. The Scottish youngster was very highly rated while coming through the youth ranks and made a blistering start as well. Early promise led to predictions that he would quickly develop into a 20 goal-a-season winger.
Unfortunately, constant injury problems ended up derailing his career and he found himself on the fringes of Celtic’s squad last season. This time around, he went out on loan to Portugal to play for Vitoria SC. There he is having a good time.
But it has already been confirmed that he won’t be staying at the Portuguese club beyond this season and will return to Celtic in the summer. As reported by Football Scotland, Vitoria SC vice-president, Nuno Leite, told Desportivo de Guimaraes:
"“We have to enjoy him until the end of the season. He is a great player, an extraordinary professional who helps the group. Unfortunately, Vitória will not be able to keep him.“As a manager, I have seen a very rare thing that we are not used to in football. When he is substituted, he apologizes for the performance when the game does not go well for him. ‘Sorry, this is not my football, I am very disappointed’.”"
Celtic player will return to Parkhead in the summer
Thus, it looks like Johnston will be returning to Parkhead in the summer, despite his good form for Vitoria SC. Of course, it feels like that has always been the plan for Celtic as well as they handed the Scot a contract extension before he went out on loan to the Portuguese club.
According to stats from Transfermarkt, Johnston has scored 3 goals and provided 3 assists in 13 appearances and 729 minutes of football for Vitoria SC.
After starting the campaign as an option to bring off the bench, Johnston has developed into a nailed on starter for the Portuguese club as well.
But the most positive thing about his loan spell at Vitoria SC has been the fact that he has not picked up any injuries. That has been the biggest worry surrounding Johnston, as his talent has never been in question.