Mika Baur has made an impressive start to life at Celtic and the summer signing has revealed how Mark Fotheringham is helping him settle into his new surroundings.
The £4.5million arrival from Paderborn has quickly caught the eye since moving to Parkhead, with his energetic style making him a valuable addition to Martin O’Neill’s midfield.
Baur may not be the biggest midfielder, but he covers plenty of ground and has already shown a willingness to put in the hard yards.
There is also an attacking edge to his game, with the German possessing the technical ability to make things happen.
Going by his touch and passing range, you could mix him up with Reo Hatate.
After just a handful of appearances, the £4.5m fee is already beginning to look like a bargain.
Baur made his second Scottish Premiership start in Saturday’s comeback victory over St Mirren as Celtic maintained their perfect start to the league campaign.
It has been some introduction to Scottish football.
The 22-year-old stepped up from Bundesliga 2 to the SPFL and was thrown straight into Champions League qualifying, before Celtic’s European campaign eventually ended in dramatic fashion against LASK.
Despite the huge jump in level and the demands placed on him, Baur has taken it all in his stride.
The midfielder has spoken positively about working under O’Neill and his coaching staff, but it is Fotheringham who has provided an important link to his previous life in Germany.
Baur explained that the former Scotland international’s ability to speak German has helped him settle and understand exactly what is being asked of him.
“He’s got so much experience,” Baur said of O’Neill. “I just played in the second division in Germany and you can learn a lot from that.
“I had a very young coach [Ralf Kettemann, 40], who was in his first year. It was the complete opposite to here.
“I really enjoy it with the manager, and with Shaun Maloney and Mark Fotheringham as well. It’s a great staff and a great coaching team. I’m learning a lot.
“It’s been great with Mark. Sometimes it’s a mixture of English and German! He can be explaining something and he mixes in some German words.
“It’s good to have someone to speak with like that. It helps a lot.” [TCW]
Fotheringham spent some time coaching in Germany and by all means is very highly rated. With his Celtic future up in the air over the summer, he did have some offers to head back to the country. In the end, he chose to wait it out and ended up back at Paradise.
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