Signed from AEK Athens for £4.5 million pounds, Vasilis Barkas came to Celtic with high expectations. The ‘keeper, though, never lived up to them.

He was due to be Celtic’s number one during the most important season in their modern history. It didn’t work out for the Greece international, who now quips his time in Glasgow as the worst in his life. He said (Daily Record): “Of course. I try to forget that period at Celtic. My family and I had a hard time. I was at a huge team, but in a difficult situation with Covid. Everything was difficult, the weather, everything. I reached the bottom in Scotland and now I appreciate everything. I said to myself that I didn’t want to have a hard time again football-wise and on a human level. I was tested for my mental health, of course.”

On paper, Barkas’ switch to the Scottish champions was a useful one for both parties. When things got difficult, however, the now 29-year-old questioned whether he would even want to train or not: “I was saying ‘I don’t want to go to training’ and ‘why is this happening to me?’ I wasn’t enjoying it. At some point, I said I had to set a goal to start enjoying it again. If you’re not happy you can’t perform.”

Barkas

In the summer of 2022, after making just 24 appearances across two seasons at Celtic, Barkas departed the club for FC Utrecht in the Netherlands. He left on an initial loan but eventually joined the club permanently.

In his year and a half there, he has played double the amount of games he did in 24 months at Parkhead. It is pleasing to see barkas succeeding after a great struggle in Glasgow.

The circumstances of his transfer to the Hoops simply didn’t work out. He is undoubtedly a talented player, but mismanagement, Covid, and the worst season in modern Celtic history affected Barkas, who is now prospering in Holland.

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