JEREMIE Frimpong may finally, much to the disappointment of those Celtic team mates who had been ribbing him about not having his own wheels, have passed his driving test at his fourth attempt recently.

Yet, having to rely on public transport to take him to and from training and matches over the years hasn’t been an entirely bad thing for the gifted Dutch right back. In fact, it has fuelled his desire to make it as a professional footballer.

The 19-year-old, a £350,000 signing from Manchester City in the summer who was expected, due to his tender age, to take some time to force his way into the first team at Parkhead, has been a nothing short of a revelation this season.

He has quickly established himself as a regular starter for Neil Lennon’s side and won many admirers among the Parkhead support with his ability going forward. He has featured in some big games, including the Betfred Cup final win over Rangers, and invariably acquitted himself superbly.

It has, though, been a long road to the exalted position he now finds himself in.

Frimpong, a pleasant lad who appears quite unaffected by his new-found celebrity status as he chats to the media at the Glasgow club’s training camp in Dubai, used to take three buses from his home in Openshaw to evening sessions with City in Clayton when he was a younger. He could never be accused of being a member of the “Snowflake Generation”.

“That was tough for me and my family as well,” he said. “There was one time when we finished training at Platt Lane sports complex in Manchester. All the guys got in the cars of their parents to go home, nice and warm and dry. I was just wearing my Man City jumper and it was pouring with rain. We were at the bus stop and there were no covers.

“All I could see were friends in their cars going past. And there I am at the bus stop. You use that as an incentive. It’s been hard, hard work. You could think the hard work started when I played my first match, but the hard work really started when I was a kid. You always have to work hard no matter where you are.

“But I always believed in myself, believed that if I was patient it would come to me. I’ve never thought of giving up. I’ve always thought I just want to be at the top and play football. I thank God for it. I am just going to keep going.”

The bus journeys are now a thing of the past. “Thankfully I’m driving now, so those days have gone,” said Frimpong. “I kept failing before. I did a few tests in Manchester and I passed at the fourth time of asking in Glasgow. It’s all good. The driving is good. Since then I’ve dropped a couple of players off in town and they seem very impressed.”

Scottish football has certainly been in thrall of the diminutive defender since he made his debut in senior football in the Betfred Cup game against Partick Thistle back in September. His interview after the final last month, particularly his “oh my days” expression, endeared him to thousands. He is constantly reminded of it as he goes about his daily life now.

“People shout it at me a lot!” he said. “For me it’s just like a normal thing to say. I’ve always said it. Now I hear it from others and it’s funny. I don’t find it weird. It’s good, I’m happy with people asking questions and things like that.

“I used to walk around Manchester and no-one would stop. Now people stop and it makes me feel happy. I’m just a happy guy in general. I like to put smiles on people’s faces. That’s just me. That will never change.”

The 2-1 defeat that Lennon’s side suffered at home at the hands of Steven Gerrard’s team in the final Ladbrokes Premiership match before the winter shutdown at the end of last month has been the first disappointment of Frimpong’s career to date. It is the only one of the 14 games he has been involved in that Celtic didn’t win.

Still, he has handled the setback with admirable maturity, including by taking himself off social media and away from the fallout that invariably follows Old Firm games, for someone so young and inexperienced.

“Obviously we were upset, but in football you win some, you lose some,” he said. “There is nothing we can do about that now, so we have just got to look forward and keep going. We just have to look forward to the next game now. I try to block the negative things out. I just like to think and focus on the next game.

“What’s the point in looking back if you can’t do anything about it? You can’t change the scoreline. I stop thinking about these things by playing Playstation and stuff. I use social media. Obviously when we got beaten I wasn’t on there though.

“I like basketball as well. I like playing and watching. I was never the biggest (he stands just 5ft 7in in his studs today) so I never played so much, but recently I’ve realised how much I like it. My team is the Houston Rockets. I was thinking about finding a basketball club in my free time just to go and watch.”

Frimpong has certainly slam dunked the chance he has been given in Scotland. But he remains grounded and determined to improve further in the second half of the season. He wasn’t included in Celtic’s squad for their Europa League group games and the prospect of featuring in the last 32 double header against Copenhagen next month appeals to him.

The Amsterdam-born player, who moved to England from his native Netherlands when he was nine, grew up supporting Ajax and the chance to grace the same stage as those European giants is exciting.

“I’m feeling good, I’m feeling happy,” he said. “It’s a new year for me. I just want to win as many games as I can and to get my assists and my goals up as well. As a kid I always wanted to play against different teams around the world so I’m really happy I can be involved now. To be part of playing for Celtic against these teams is everything you would want.”