Luis Palma uncovered as Celtic incomer’s amazing dedication and love of the game revealed by former coach

Luis Palma is set to be launched into the Ibrox cauldron for Celtic this weekend but Alex Dyer is convinced the kid will simply grin and bear it.

The former Kilmarnock boss worked with the Honduran wide boy at Aris Thessaloniki when he was Alan Pardew’s No.2 with the Greek Super League outfit. Palma could handle the heat on wild trips to face big guns such as AEK Athens, Olympiakos and Panathinaikos – where away fans are shut out.

It’ll be the same for the Hoops in Govan this weekend where Brendan Rodgers’ side will be up against it in front of 50,000 Rangers supporters. Dyer watched Palma play with a smile no matter where he went and he reckons the hit kid will have that grinning feeling with Celts. He said: “It can be quite crazy in Greece. It’s a better standard to what people might think. There’s not much difference between the two leagues, if anything, the Greek league might be higher in the rankings.

“There are five or six really big clubs with the likes of Olympiakos, Panathinaikos, POAK, AOK, and us at Aris, clubs with huge supports. They are fanatical over there, they are just crazy about their football.

“It’s like when Celtic play Rangers. You don’t have away supports in Greece and the atmospheres can be intimidating. It’s intense and the demands are huge. But Luis is used to that and he handled it. I’m sure that will stand him in good stead going to Scotland as he won’t be overawed by the atmosphere.

“It’s a step up to Celtic but he’ll cope with Scottish football no problem. I have no doubt he’ll really relish getting his chance in the Champions League too.”

Dyer has no doubts about Palma’s ability. The youngster was one of the hottest properties in Greece with his flexibility to play on both flanks or