Things can change very quickly in football and Aaron Mooy’s rise since joining Celtic is proof of that. When the Australian was brought in in the summer, the move was met with a lot of raised eyebrows from the fans. It was viewed by many as a sideward step instead of moving forward. Before joining the Hoops, he had been playing his football for Shanghai Port FC.
Thus, many believed that it was not going to work out and even compared the move to the one for James McCarthy from a year before.
It is safe to say that the critics have been proven wrong and how. On current form, it is very possible that Mooy is the best player in all of Scotland. He is dropping one masterclass after another in the middle of the park, and seems to have moved ahead of Matt O’Riley in the pecking order.
Unsurprisingly, he has become a Celtic fan favourite as well. And Mooy seems to be very happy with the support that he is getting. As reported by the Daily Record, the midfielder said:
"“Yeah, I don’t like attention much. It’s a great feeling. I try to hold back my smile, but I can’t when the fans sing. I’m enjoying it and the fans enjoy singing it.“You’re playing for a big club. The fans are amazing. Home and away, even around the city, back home. It’s a bit hard to explain. It’s something you have to experience yourself. I’m enjoying it.”"
Mooy sends beautiful message to Celtic fans
Ange Postecoglou has shown an incredible eye for picking out the right players for his system and the signing of Mooy is further proof of that.
Now, the big question is surrounding Mooy’s long-term future at the club. He is 32 years of age, but on current form, nobody would want to see him leave Celtic anytime soon.
Mooy is believed to have signed a two-year deal with Celtic, but the second year is rumoured to be an option.
One can only hope that Mooy continues on at Celtic for the foreseeable future and continues performing at this level. At this point of time, he is one of the very first names on Postecoglou’s team sheet.