You may have noticed that in the last number of fixtures, young American Cameron Harper has been rewarded with a spot on the Celtic bench.
The last few months have not been the greatest for the majority of people but for Harper this has allowed him to head back home to the states and work hard on trying to breakthrough to the first-team.
In an interview with the official Celtic Website, Harper reveals the work that he has put in that has clearly been recognised by manager Neil Lennon.
“I went straight back home to the US just before lockdown fully kicked in. I’m from a place called Costa Mesa, which is in between San Diego and Los Angeles.
“I spent my time working hard and training every day. I worked with a personal trainer every morning and we worked on cardio and power-related stuff like sprints. Later in the afternoon I’d head out with my Dad and do some work with the ball.
“I’ve put on around three kilos of muscle and I’ve noticed that’s helped me handle the challenges of training with the first team better.
“I came back to Scotland at the end of July. I received a call to tell me I was coming back to train with the first team. I was a little bit nervous but I had a few days to get my head around it. I told myself all I could do was come in, work hard and try to impress the coaches.”
Harper moved from the USA in 2018 and was originally spotted and pointed in the direction of the Hoops, over there by former Celtic hero, Tommy Burns son.
He impressed during two trials at the time and was signed up before having an impressing first showing in the reserves that year, even being called up to train with the first-team several times.
It is clear that the winger has a brilliant attitude and work-ethic that could allow him to succeed for the Scottish Champions.
He is certainly making all the right noises and it is very encouraging to see a player like Cameron Harper making the bench as Neil Lennon only gives players a chance if he feels its justified through hard work.
