Celtic have made a fantastic start to the 2024/25 season. They are sitting atop the Premiership table, level with Aberdeen but nine points ahead of the Rangers. The Hoops are also in the final of the Scottish League Cup, where they will be taking on Philippe Clement's side. And in Europe, they have shown a ton of improvement and have seven points from the first four games, with wins over RB Leipzig and Slovan Bratislava as well as an away draw vs Atalanta.
Plenty of Celtic players seem to have improved since last season. Alistair Johnston is someone whose name belongs in that category.
The right-back was signed from CF Montreal in early 2023 in order to replace Josip Juranovic, who was coming off a stellar World Cup with Croatia and was on his way out of Celtic in January. Back then, not many expected Johnton to be able to fill that role as well as his predecessor.
Johnston has exceeded all expectations though. One could argue that he has been even better than Juranovic at right-back for Celtic. And this season, he seems to have taken his game to a whole new level.
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Johnston's output going forward has been exceptional this season. According to stats from Transfermarkt, he has scored 4 goals and provided 5 assists in 17 appearances.
That kind of form has come with its rewards as well. As reported by Celtic's official website, the club have agreed a new contract with Johnston which will run until the summer of 2029.
Johnston seems like the kind of player who could go on to have a long career at Celtic if he chooses to. At 26 years of age, he is entering his prime. But he already has plenty of experience as well, having made more than 50 appearances for the Canadian national team.