The Celtic journey to paradise: 8am serenades in LA, Dara O'Shea agent call and £700k to one lucky club

Adam Idah is the personification of a cat that has got the cream. Finally back at Celtic after a transfer saga that took weeks to resolve, the Irishman plans on repaying the love of the club’s support and the faith shown to him by manager Brendan Rodgers.

Idah will freely admit that his career was in a dark place before Celtic landed him on loan back in January from Norwich, where he was struggling to hold down a place in the starting XI. Five months later, he became the darling of the Parkhead fans, scoring the goal that downed Rangers to win the Scottish Cup final. Such was the transformation of his career in Scotland, it comes as no surprise to hear he was desperate to make the move permanent.

The Irishman is now contracted to Celtic for five years. He has security at a place that feels like home. “I think ever since I came up here the first time I knew how big this club was and that I wanted to play for it,” said Idah as he was unveiled to the press.

“Being in the changing room with the boys and around the staff, it was unbelievable. It was so good for me and I’m just delighted to be here now.”

Adam Idah will wear the No 9 shirt at Celtic this season. | SNS Group

Idah’s future has been the talk of the town ever since scoring that late goal back in May. He tried to switch off while on his holidays, knowing where he wanted to be but unsure how long it would take for Celtic and Norwich to thrash out his fee. His message to his agent was simple: let me know when the deal is done.

“I didn’t really know what was going on myself,” revealed Idah. “I kind of actually found out it was on Sky Sports that it got done. I was just in my house and my mum rang me, so yeah, I phoned my agent and said just do what you need to do. And an hour after he rang me and said it was agreed and I said ‘I know I’ve already seen it on TV!’”

Idah spent part of his summer vacation in the United States and even though he was more than 5,000 miles away from Glasgow in Los Angeles, he could not escape the passion of the Celtic support.

“I was in LA and there was a group of Celtic fans down on the boulevard,” he recalled. “Eight o'clock in the morning and there’s Celtic fans everywhere. That was a bit of a shock to me. It was a bit of a new thing to get used to that kind of side of things because you haven’t really been identified like that in a place like that.

Idah scored the winner for Celtic against Rangers in the Scottish Cup final. | SNS Group

“It’s a strange one. Even going back home, obviously everyone knows me back home, so it’s pretty normal for me going home. But now that I’ve been at Celtic, it’s like I’m a new man when I go home, which is pretty strange. But yeah look, it’s been fantastic. I say it all the time, the fans here have been amazing to me. The reaction I got, the welcome, has been top class. It’s time for me to repay that now.”

Idah was on vacation with fellow Irishman and Burnley defender Dara O’Shea, who has been linked with a move to Celtic this summer. Eagle-eyed fans will have spotted the centre-half was quick to congratulate Idah on his move on Instagram. “I was actually on holidays with Dara in the summer,” smiled Idah. “He’s a fantastic player and he’s up there. He scored the other night, so he’s a great player.” Could he join you at Celtic, Idah was asked. “It’s down to his agent that,” was the quick response.

His move to Celtic has, however, had an impact on another entity close to Idah’s heart: College Corinthians. It has emerged that the County Cork team inserted a ten per cent sell-on clause when the player moved from the Irish side to Norwich City. Whoever brokered such an agreement deserved a few pints of Guinness. Corinthians have pocketed a sum in the region of £700,000 as a result.

“I didn’t even know that was a thing,” said Idah. “It’s huge. I can’t even remember what age I was when I went to Corinthians. But obviously they’ve been a massive influence in my career. It’s where I started playing football and where I started enjoying playing football. So, it’s obviously massive for them. That’s a huge chunk of money and I’m delighted for them. I can only thank them for what they’ve done for me.

Idah speaks to the press after completing his permanent move to Celtic. | SNS Group

“I think we won the league every year I was there. Didn’t lose many games, it was great. All the friends I grew up with when I was a kid and schoolmates. It was unbelievable. It’s where you start enjoying football. As a kid, playing with all your friends, there’s nothing better.”

Except, that is, playing for Celtic. Idah’s mother Fiona noted the improvement in her son’s mood when he made the move in January and a regular attendee at matches last season, she will make the journey over from Ireland frequently to support her boy.

“She was delighted,” added Idah. “She’s so proud of me and she’s buzzing. She’s dying to get over for the games now, so she’s loving life. She came to quite a few games and obviously she came over for the cup final, so that was a big one for her. She says it herself – she’s never seen me as happy playing football as when I came here the first time.”