Celtic‘s Camilo Durán has enjoyed a good start with Martin O’Neill’s side and that helped him make his debut for Colombia during this international break.
Last season, the striker impressed for Qarabağ FK, scoring 15 goals and contributing 10 assists from 45 matches. His performances convinced the Scottish champions to bet on him in the summer.
Celtic reportedly paid around €2.5-5m to secure his services, and the move has worked out well. He’s scored six goals and contributed three assists from 12 matches for O’Neill’s side.
The 24-year-old made his Europa League debut in Celtic’s 3-1 defeat to Ferencváros last month. His Celtic form helped him receive his first call-up from La Tricolor manager, Néstor Lorenzo, for this international break.
Durán was an unused substitute in Colombia’s 1-1 draw against Mexico. At the weekend, the Celtic summer signing made his senior debut by coming off the bench in their 1-0 defeat to Paraguay.
Quick adaption at Celtic
Néstor Lorenzo could hand him minutes in their friendly against Peru on Wednesday [UK time].
Ahead of this clash, Gol Caracol caught up with Camilo Durán’s brother, Hugo, to discuss a few topics, including his start with Martin O’Neill’s side.
“Camilo has taken his move to Scottish football as a new challenge. But he’s very happy because he’s been able to settle in quickly with the club, his teammates and his new surroundings,” he said.
Last month, the Colombia media covered the excitement over his good start to his Celtic career. The player’s brother has spoken about the family’s happiness, after he made his debut for the national team.
“Camilo’s call-up to the national team was excellent news for us, something we’d all always dreamed of. It happened, and he’s happy too. The first thing he did was thank God and express his delight at this opportunity,” Hugo Durán explained.
| Camilo Durán — club statistics | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27 so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| Club(s) | Lusitânia / Portimonense | Portimonense / Qarabağ | Celtic |
| Appearances | 28 | 48 | 12 |
| Starts | 18 | 33 | 11 |
| Total minutes played | 1,587 | 3,112 | 918 |
| Goals | 5 | 15 | 6 |
| Assists | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Goals + assists | 5 | 16 | 9 |
| Minutes per goal | 317 | 207 | 153 |
Celtic attacker’s long path to top
Camilo Durán moved to Europe for the first time when Portuguese side Lusitânia signed him in 2022. Two years later, he left then for Portimonense, who then sold him to Qarabağ FK a year later.
His performances for the Azerbaijan Premier League side helped him secure a move to Celtic. Camilo Durán’s brother now opened about the sacrifices he had to make to reach this stage in his career.
“Camilo has always worked hard, far from his country and his home, and the truth is he never thought of giving up; now he’s reaping the rewards,” he added.
“The biggest sacrifice he made was leaving home. He did that to pursue his dream of becoming a professional footballer. There he is. Everyone’s delighted with how things are going for him.”
