When you’re playing for a big club, dominating a league, there’s a level of pressure associated with that responsibility.
Celtic players know that more than most. The Bhoys are the dominant force in Scottish football, having won the title more times than anyone else and essentially made the top flight theirs over the last decade.
That has helped create this image that the club and its players have it easy, with plenty criticised down the years for picking the ‘easy’ option when electing to join Celtic.
Dedryck Boyata, who played for the club for four years and won everything on offer with the club, wants to dispel that idea.
“No, it’s not easy (playing for Celtic),” he told DH in Belgium.
“You need discipline every day, the matches are still played, and we’re playing with a lot of fan pressure.”
Boyata left Celtic this summer, with an expiring contract leaving him free to choose his next destination.
He elected to head to Germany, signing a three-year deal with Bundesliga side Hertha Berlin, who finished 11th in the league last year.
Club wise it can be seen as a step-down but league wise it’s certainly a step up, and Boyata admits it makes a change facing teams who aren’t solely interested in defending.
“There is more individual quality than in Scotland,” he added.
“It’s also a bit tougher, and in Glasgow, we always came up against teams playing a low block.
“(However) in the Bundesliga every team is different, and sometimes all the duels of a match are played at 100%.”
