For a shy guy, Aaron Mooy didn’t half draw attention to himself on Wednesday night at Easter Road.
A superb man of the match performance was underpinned by the Celtic midfielder’s first two goals for the club and at the end he had to be shoved front and centre by his team-mates to enjoy the adulation of the travelling support which had been thrilled by the manner of the 4-0 victory. To the tune of Boney M’s ‘Daddy Cool’ - once reserved by Leeds fans for Celtic coach Harry Kewell - Mooy’s name rang around Hibs’ stadium long into the night.
And beyond, as the Australian World Cup star revealed with a wry smile afterwards. He said: “All the boys are on the bus singing it now! Harry Kewell mentioned it to me and I didn’t understand, but now I do! It’s always nice when the supporters get behind you, that’s what you want. Obviously, when you join a club everything is new. There are systems, new players and sometimes it just doesn’t happen straight away.
“I just keep going, keep trying to get better and hopefully keep improving and helping the team. That’s all I can do, hopefully they like what they see, it’s not really in my control, I try my best.
“It was an amazing feeling to get my first goal. I’ve had a few chances in other games, so it was great to see it hit the net. You don’t score goals unless you get into those positions and I try and take that on board and get into position to hit the target.”
It’s fair to say Mooy was a slow burner when he arrived in the summer. But his boss Ange Postecoglou always maintained that the 32-year-old would be a vital component in the well oiled machine that is rolling over all comers in Scotland.
And the player himself admits it took time to adjust to playing for a club of Celtic’s stature. He added: “It’s been more, probably, than I expected. The intensity of it all was a bit of a shock at the start.
“Yeah, I’m enjoying it, it’s an amazing club. It was a shock because it’s a big, big club. There’s 60,000 people at every home game, demanding a win. It’s a different sort of pressure, but I’m enjoying it, hopefully it makes me a better player.”
Postecoglou admitted he enjoyed seeing his countryman gain the recognition for his work from the Celtic support. He said: “It’s one of those things where he’s scored a couple of goals as well, which obviously helps.
“It was great for Aaron, he’s been a bit unlucky, he’s been knocking on the door at getting a couple of goal and it was great to see him do it against Hibs. With Aaron, it was just about getting him fit. It’s hard for people to sort of conceptualise, but he had played probably two games of football in six months before we signed him.
“So, I knew that when we signed him it was going to take a little bit of time to get to the fitness levels we need him to be and he needs to be, but at the same time, I knew that when it happened he’s got such a good engine. His ability to run, his quality would eventually shine through.”
The Parkhead manager believes Mooy and Celtic’s other players who performed in Qatar have returned bristling with self-belief and none more so than Daizen Maeda, who capped an all-action display with a stunning solo effort against Hibs.
The Japanese attacker scored in the last 16 of the World Cup against Josip Juranovic’s Croatia and his level of performance did not surprise his club boss, who worked with him in the J-League and who knew exactly what he was getting when he brought Maeda to Scotland a year ago.
Postecoglou added: “I obviously coached Daizen in Japan so I knew what I was bringing. He is such a selfless, team player. He just does the stuff that doesn’t often get the recognition. The amount of work he puts in, the running, sometimes for little reward or recognition.
“He doesn’t complain, he’s a willing runner for his team. He scored a cracking goal at Easter Road and set up the first one really well. He was a constant threat.
“I don’t underestimate that at all, that quality of being so selfless that you are prepared to give everything for the team every week irrespective of your own personal rewards whether they come or not. When he’s out there closing people down, sometimes we don’t win the ball, but it doesn’t deter him.
“It’s the same with chances, if he’s missed one it doesn’t deter him. He knows he has to be there, that’s his responsibility, to consistently be in those positions. I saw that in Japan when I first coached him, and I love that about him more than anything else, just that really strong mentality to continually do what’s right for the team irrespective of what has gone on beforehand.”
“We’ve had a positive World Cup, the guys who went away have come back with some real belief through the positive experiences they had. Daizen, Aaron, Cameron, Jura we’ve yet to see, but I’m sure we’ll get the benefits of that. Alistair Johnston too.
“I think that has helped us, not just with the players’ own conditioning. But also in their belief in themselves.”
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