Mikey Johnston on Celtic mission to convince Brendan Rodgers as he issues reminder of credentials to cut it with the champions

Mikey Johnston admits the jury is still out on his mission to convince Celtic fans he can nail down a first-team spot with the Hoops.

But the Republic of Ireland international is adamant he’s more than worthy of a fair trial after returning to the club from a loan spell in Portugal as an improved all-round footballer. Brendan Rodgers handed the winger his first start in 22 months against Hibs in midweek. And he challenged the 24-year-old to grab the opportunity with both hands as he’s no longer “a baby” emerging from the club’s academy.

Johnston insists the penny has dropped as he looks to earn a sustained run in the side and go from being the forgotten man to a huge part of the future. He said: “People do like something new, such as new signings, but I am still just trying to prove to people that I can play here. I have been at the club for a while and people are probably saying that I’ve been here for this long and maybe not proven myself – but I have in spells.

“It’s very hard to win people over. The pressure is on me and I’m trying to unlock my potential the best I can. I went on loan to a league in Portugal when I wanted to be at Celtic. I’m trying to take every step I can to fulfil my potential.

“People act as though I haven’t actually played games for Celtic but I have played nearly 100 and played in six cup finals. Obviously I need to be playing every single week and that’s what I want to do. The manager is telling me to take the bull by the horns and hopefully I can do that.”

Appearances off the bench against Motherwell, St Johnstone and Lazio provided enough evidence for Rodgers that Johnston merited a start on Wednesday night against Hibs. But the wideman admitted it was difficult for him to hit the