Gary Hooper has admitted that he thrives on pressure.
Twelve months ago he helped Scunthorpe punch above their weight to stay in The Championship with his £2.5m sale being a factor in yesterday’s relegation for The Irons.
Hooper has followed his old club closely despite his close season move to Celtic and is determined to find the goals that will drive Celtic to the SPL title.
“The pressure of going for a title is very different to what I’ve experienced,” he admitted. “This one is a good battle, up at the top, going for trophies.
“At Scunny it was the pressure of relegation but I like both of those pressure situations, I just like playing and getting results.
“Scunthorpe have been relegated but we are at the other end of the scale here. Dundee United is a massive game for us and even looking into the midweek trip to Inverness, it’s going to be tough.
“That’s the focus for me at the moment, winning those two games, rather than trying to predict who will finish on top at the end of the season.
“There’s going to be pressure in front of our own support because everyone wants us to do well. But it’s nothing when you compare it to the pressure Neil Lennon is going through in his life at the moment.
“It just shows what a good character he is that he gets on with it and doesn’t let it affect him. We’ll draw inspiration from how he deals with it, especially after what has happened in the last few weeks and months.
“We have got to do it for him, the fans and ourselves.”
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