Exclusive:Patrick Roberts shares Celtic transfer return verdict as he delivers Hoops thank you and divulges Rangers miss
In part two of our exclusive interview with Patrick Roberts he discusses his love for Celtic fans and his thoughts on a return.
Arriving at Celtic as a teenager with only a handful of senior appearances to his name, former Parkhead cult hero Patrick Roberts would have been forgiven had the relentless, high-stakes pressure of the Glasgow goldfish bowl swallowed him up and spat him out without warning.
Signing an initial 18-month loan deal from Manchester City in the winter of 2016, Roberts arrived as a highly-rated 18-year-old who had shone so brightly as an English youth international; he’d coined the nickname ‘Mini Messi’ thanks to his effortless ability to bamboozle full-backs with his close control and nimble footwork.
Compared to the Argentinian footballing icon, he arrived with an impressive billing, but Celtic supporters have rarely judged on reputation. Their cult heroes are made on the pitch; judgement is made solely on what you showcase on the hallowed ‘Paradise’ turf - and Roberts admits it didn’t take him long to understand the responsibility that came with wearing the green and white hooped jersey, as he spoke exclusively to The Scotsman about his time at the club.
“If you're a Scottish lad coming up through the academy, you'd expect a lot of love,” said Roberts. “But if you're an English boy coming on loan, it's different. I had affection for Celtic as a club anyway, but to get the appreciation that I did from the fans straight away was amazing. They are fans that like to get off their seat and see great football. They obviously like to win as well - and we did a lot of that during my time there!
“I played some of my best football there. They always stuck by me, and that was my experience of Celtic. We won an invincible treble. I felt I was quite integral in that; I was young and fearless. I appreciated it all, and that's what made me want to come back a second time. I have a lot of love for Celtic fans. There were so many great moments.”
Winning three league titles, two Scottish Cups and two Scottish League Cups, his time at Celtic is remembered as a roaring success. However, it wasn’t all plain sailing, with Roberts famously missing an open goal in a Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Rangers. The first time the two sides had faced each other in four years due to their rivals' demotion to the fourth tier, an audible gasp was heard across Hampden Park when he somehow managed to fire wide from six yards out, unguarded, with the goal gaping.
With the scores locked at 2-2 after extra-time, the match headed to penalties, with Rangers prevailing 5-4 in the shootout to take a famous win and leaving a young Roberts distraught after suffering his first - and only - defeat in an Old Firm derby. He went on to win four of his next five games against Celtic’s fiercest rivals and Roberts, now an experienced pro with Birmingham City in the EFL Championship, looks back on his moment of horror as one of the most important of his career.
“That was probably the biggest lesson I’ve had,” admits Roberts. “As you get older, there are other obstacles and barriers to get past, but as a young boy when you’re given the freedom to play against your biggest rivals in God knows how long, then you miss an open-goal at Hampden...it was tough. It got the better of me. When you’re young, you think you’re clever and cocky, and you can put it away. Then you sit in the reality of it, you’ve lost the game.
“So it wasn’t entirely on me; we lost the game on penalties, but if we win that game it is a bit different. But we didn’t. I think [losing that game] is partly why they decided to change the manager [Ronny Deila], so if that doesn’t happen, is Brendan Rodgers there? I don’t know, but it did happen, and he was there, and it worked out the way it did.
“You can look at it two ways. It was horrible for me at the time; I didn’t leave the house for a couple of days. I went to training, then went straight home. No shopping or anything. It was tough as a young lad. But you’ve got to get back on the horse and go again, and I’ve carried that throughout my career. There’s a brighter side to it if you keep going. It’s the biggest game in people’s lives, and it happened, but it’s part of a long history now.”
Ending his loan stint at Celtic in 2018, he went on to have a spate of loan spells prior to becoming a key member of a Sunderland squad that rose from EFL League One all the way to the English Premier League, before moving on to Birmingham City last summer. Football moves, meaning his trophy-collecting stint at Celtic feels like a long time ago. For Roberts though, he remembers it all as if it were yesterday.
“I wanted to go back to Celtic after the original 18-month loan,” recalls Roberts. “There were conversations around if I should go to different places, but I wanted to carry on at Celtic. I felt good, and I thought I could go on and we could do miracles again. I was at a big club in City; they put a lot into me. If I was to sign for Celtic again, it would have been back then; I would have signed permanently and done things a little bit differently.
“Could I have ever come back? Maybe a long time ago, before I went to Sunderland. I could have went, but it just didn't happen. And when I signed back on loan for the second time, I was hoping it might have happened after that but it never happened. I had a bad last season at Celtic, so that didn't come to anything.
“I still watch the games against Rangers if I don't have a match myself, because you get the early kick-offs. Champions League or Europa League, whichever they are in. I don't always get to watch an entire 90 minutes these days, with a young boy and games myself, but I sat down and watched the entire 90 minutes of the game against Hearts last season.
“Best game I've seen in a while, it takes you back to Celtic and when I was there - although I don't think it was quite as dramatic when I was there. We had the league won a few weeks earlier, normally. The fans, the atmosphere, it is so amazing to play there. That is what you miss about Celtic. The European nights, the way the crowd gets behind you when there's things to be won and you're going for titles. I'm lucky to have experienced three of them.
“I love watching Celtic. I have a lot of admiration for Celtic, but if I was to go back it would have been when I was younger in my career. It wasn't meant to be. I love where I play now, and I had the chance to play at Sunderland for four years - if I had come back, that might not have happened. Paths turn in different ways. But the two and a half years I had at Celtic were a pride, and a privilege. I wouldn't go back now, but I'd love to go back and watch a game when I'm finished playing.”
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