Steven Gerrard has Celtic 'winning culture' as Moussa Dembele makes honest Saudi money admission

Former Celtic star Moussa Dembele freely admits his move to Saudi Arabia was all about the money and doesn't care what people think as he revealed his touching motivation.

After leaving Lyon this summer, the former Hoops hero completed a transfer to Al-Ettifaq to link up with ex-Rangers boss Steven Gerrard in the Middle East. Dembele, who spent two years at Celtic, previously paid £180,000 out of his own money to build a medical centre in the Kobri village in Mali, where his parents live, three years ago.

And he's set to use his Saudi fortunes to improve the standard of living in the area again. Dembele, 27, said: "It’s a very exciting project that I wanted to be a part of. The club wanted me badly. People are free to think and say what they want. They will always criticise without knowing the truth, but the critics would dream of finding themselves in my situation.

"All professional choices are oriented with the aim of earning more money. It's part of professional development. Earn more money and thrive. There will always be those who want to give me lessons. But even in the media, people move for more money. The more I earn, the more I give. There is my parents' village in Mali where I plan to develop many things to make the lives of the people there more pleasant.

"I love working with Steven Gerrard. I spoke to him on the phone and he explained to me that I was his number one choice in attack. We talked about tactics and how he wanted to play and use me and it clicked straight away.

"Our relations are excellent. He's a football legend and he knows what he wants. He has a culture of winning which reminds me a lot of what I knew in England at Fulham, then at Celtic and Atletico Madrid with Diego Simeone. My life is