Mikey Johnston has revealed that his Celtic contract was extended before he went out on loan to Vitoria Guimaraes last summer.
In December 2019 Celtic announced that the winger had signed a contract taking him through until 2025.
Injuries have hampered his progress, last summer it seemed to be in the interests of all parties that Johnston got out on loan to get regular football and get his career back on track.
In midweek he burst back into the spotlight with an appearance for Ireland against Latvia, speaking to The Sun he had lots to say about his future with Celtic:
Last season I still played 20 games for Celtic, so it’s not like I was pushed out the door.
I played in a cup final for the manager and he gave me an extra year when I left the club, so that gave me the faith to say he wants me to come back and produce. I needed consistency and more minutes.
We had an honest conversation and he said it was best that I went elsewhere to get it. I was fine with that. I needed a freshen up.
Opinions on me weren’t accurate and I wanted to change that. I had to get away from the UK, to be honest.
Portugal has been really good. I had quite a bad time with injuries in the last couple of years. For a full year, touch wood, I have been fine and managed to get back to full fitness.
Vitoria has been a great platform for me. They are in a big league and it’s really competitive.
I have had a lot of starts, a lot of games, a lot of consistency, which is what I needed. Will I be back at Celtic long-term? We will see. I don’t want to sit on the bench. I just want to feel important.
Sitting on the bench under Ange Postecoglou is a different prospect to other managers, especially for wingers.
In virtually every match the Celtic boss uses four wingers as he uses his squad to the maximum, keeping key players fit and involved.
If Liel Abada moves on in the summer there could be a place in the Celtic squad for the newly capped Irish winger.
? @mikeyjohnston10 signs new five-year deal with #CelticFC!#Johnston2025 ???
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) December 28, 2019
