Inside Celtic link to Admira Wacker as pioneer Matthew Anderson assesses sink or swim Austria loan

Celtic talent Matthew Anderson believes he grew as a player and as a man after being thrown in at the deep end for a season on loan to Austria.

Now he’s waiting to see whether Brendan Rodgers decides to give him a chance with the Hoops this term. The left back is with Scotland Under 21s who face Turkey in a friendly tonight in Istanbul before playing in Austria on Friday. Anderson, 20, is highly-rated at Celtic and was sent to Admira Wacker at the start of the season, along with keeper Tobi Oluwayemi as the first players to go to the Austrian second-tier club after their link-up with the Scottish champions.

But Oluwayemi was injured early on and Anderson had to fend for himself in a foreign country and in a league he knew nothing about. He’s returned to Celtic though after playing in every game for the club and netted his first goal the other week too.

New Celtic pathway manager Darren O’Dea stated last month: “I am delighted for Matty. Had a brilliant loan spell. To play week in and week out while adapting to a new country, the experience he has gained will be invaluable.” And Anderson admits he’s delighted with the experience. He said: “I’ve really enjoyed it.

“Me and Tobi were the first ones to go over there for the partnership with Celtic and I think it went really well for my first full season in football. The standard was surprisingly impressive I thought.

"A lot of the players told me they had spent time playing in the Austrian Bundesliga and it wasn’t much of a drop-off. I thought it was a perfect level for me to go into for my first season in football.

"My target was to go over there and play as many games as I could. And I think I ended up playing in every game I was available for. So it almost went