Christopher Jullien explains why Celtic are a big draw for French players

Defender says mix of French and Scottish players is a big strength

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN - AUGUST 29: Celtic's Scott Brown and Christopher Jullien are pictured celebrating after the UEFA Europa League play-off match between AIK and Celtic on August 29, 2019, at the Friends Arena, Stockholm (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

Since signing their first ever French player 23 years ago when Stephane Mahe joined the squad which denied Rangers’ bid to win 10-in-a-row, Celtic have experienced mixed fortunes in the Gallic market.

But while the likes of Stephane Bonnes, Jeremie Aliadiere and Steven Mouyokolo have passed through Parkhead’s gates and then departed unlamented by the club’s supporters, the positives have outweighed the negatives.

In recent times, Ligue 1 has certainly been a happy hunting ground for Celtic’s scouting department with Moussa Dembele, Olivier Ntcham and Odsonne Edouard all making significant contributions to the domestic trophy-winning monopoly under Brendan Rodgers and now Neil Lennon.

Their most recent French recruit is also proving to be a success. Since his £7 million arrival from Toulouse last summer, Christopher Jullien has established himself as a key figure in Lennon’s side.

The big central defender feels he has found an ideal environment for his development and has revealed many of his former team-mates and compatriots back home would welcome the opportunity to follow him to Celtic Park.

“I’ve had a lot of French players I know asking me ‘How is Celtic?’,” said Jullien. “I say to them ‘It’s huge – one of the biggest clubs’. In France, there is a lot of respect for Celtic. Everyone knows it’s a famous club with amazing fans.

“But when you also focus on the team and the big games we play, you realise just how huge it is. I post personal videos on my social media and the reaction from back home is big.

“When my friends come to games, see the stadium, the fans and all the talent we have, they are blown away.

“A lot of them would love to play for Celtic but it’s not that easy. There are a lot of good players dreaming of the same.

“French players are different to Scottish players. We are a little more chilled! You need to adapt to Scottish football but everyone at the club helped us do that.

“When you have a person like Scott Brown here, it helps too as he is the perfect captain. He is the biggest leader I have ever seen in football. I am so happy to have him on my side. His talent, his passion on the field, his will to win – he is amazing for every one of his team-mates.

“Then you have the other guys like Leigh Griffiths, Callum McGregor, Ryan Christie and all the rest of the Scottish lads. Having a lot of Scottish and French players is a perfect mix for Celtic. There is a good balance.

“The French players have done well at Celtic and when I arrived, having some already here made me more comfortable. Odsonne and Olivier were there, and others like Boli Bolingoli spoke the language, too.

“It helped me settle at the start but the staff at the club made me so comfortable too, along with the Scottish boys. Even some of them try to speak French at times! But as team-mates, they make you very comfortable and that’s a big thing at Celtic.

“I have developed as a player and a person on so many levels here. When I arrived and did my first interview, I spoke about how I wanted to progress in everything on the field and off it.

“My team-mates made me feel comfortable and I learned a lot from them. At Celtic, if you lose, you have to come back fighting. There is no other way.

“That mentality makes you stronger as a player and a person. I have become a better man and a better footballer.

“You learn from every game and training session. The worst moments of the season can be just as important for you. For me, when you fall you need to show the strength to get back up. The bad games the team had, the bad games I had – they definitely helped me.

“I feel stronger for the experience of last season and even my family notice a change in me. From this point in 2019 to now, they say to me ‘You are a completely different man’.

“I feel I have developed a lot. The trophies show the achievement on the pitch but I have progressed off it too. I am happy at Celtic, I feel settled in Glasgow and life is good.

“The weather could be better but it’s a great city and I love working with the staff at the club. I feel stronger, quicker and I think I have become a better player since signing for Celtic.

“But I also know that I need to keep making progress and I will be working hard in pre-season to do that. I want to return even stronger and become even better next season.”

While ensuring solidity at the back is Jullien’s primary function, he also proved to be a valuable source of goals in his debut season with seven from his 46 appearances, including the winner in the Betfred Cup Final against Rangers.

“I was actually a striker until I was about 13 and then I changed position to defence,” added the 27-year-old.

“I was more comfortable with the game in front of me. But I have always loved scoring goals. I am a defender but I know I need to help the attack.

“When I come up for corners or free-kicks, I sometimes say to my team-mates ‘My zone is the goal’. I always want to score or create as much danger as I can when I arrive in the opposition box.

“When it works, I am so happy. There were some big goals last season. I spoke with the manager when I arrived and he spoke about what he wanted from me.

“Keeping clean sheets is my job but he also told me he expected goals from set-pieces. We set a target, which will stay between us, but he felt I could help the team and I did my best.

“I worked on my runs and movement with the coaching staff and it has worked. Hopefully it continues next season.”

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