Jason Denayer believes that his loan move to Celtic has helped his career take off.
The 19-year-old was a surprise call up to Marc Wilmots squad but Friday’s home match with Andorra shouldn’t be too demanding although a visit to Bosnia four days later is likely to prove much tougher.
Denayer’s selection in among a squad that draws heavily from players based in England has attracted a lot of attention in the Belgian media with comparisons always coming back to Vincent Kompany.
The loan Celt has never hidden his admiration for the Manchester City skipper but knows that there is a lot of work ahead of him if he is to follow in Kompany’s footsteps or even play line up in the same side as his international captain.
“I had heard that the coach (Wilmots) was watching me but I thought that I’d only get called up for a friendly,” Denayer responded to the announcement of his inclusion in the full international squad. ” I take it as a compliment to be named with such a strong group of players.”
As part of the joining up ritual Denayer had to sing in front of his team-mates opting for ‘I believe I can fly’ by R Kelly for the nineties film Space Jam.
After singing in front of his international team-mates the 19-year-old was asked if he believed he could play alongside Kompany confidently answering: “Why not.”
Manuel Pellegrini encouraged Denayer to take the loan move to Celtic, only some outstanding performances in the hoops will allow the young Belgian to complete his journey to team up with Komany on a regular basis.