Celtic's Leigh Griffiths fighting fit and raring to go

The 30-year-old forward, who described himself as “disgrace” this summer has also set himself the ambition of landing a testimonial with the Parkhead side.

Still three years away from the 10-year landmark, there is much convincing for Griffiths to do between now and then. Few would question Griffiths’ ability as an instinctive striker. With 121 Celtic goals he is in elite company with only 19 players scoring more than him for the Parkhead club. 

Where he did need to offer some convincing, though, as recently as a fortnight ago, was in terms of fitness and ability to play a full 90 minutes.

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“It is night and day [from the start of the season]," he said. “I think the manager would say that as well. I let myself down. I let everybody down. But I’m trying to repay them bit by bit by helping the team, scoring goals and getting the team three points. 

“I had to take a long hard look at myself because I was a disgrace when I came back. 

“Well, when I say a disgrace, I wasn’t because when I left in March and came back I was only 2.5kg over what I was before but I wasn’t as fit as I should have been. That’s down to me and my professionalism. I take that on the chin. I’ve been slaughtered for that publicly and in-house. 

“I took it on the chin, went away and worked extremely hard. Then I had a couple of injuries. 

“Dubai gave me a chance to get fitter. I know the gaffer came out and said that I was not match fit or not as fit as I could be. I think you’ve seen over a number of games that I’ve played that I’ve ran my heart out and it shows I’m fit enough to start games.” 

Griffiths was criticised by a number of former players, including Chris Sutton who took aim at his lack of professionalism. The striker has claimed some of the jibes have been down to jealousy. 

“I’ve been criticised by ex-players and ex-managers who all want to give their tuppenceworth,” said the 30-year-old. “But they weren’t saying that when I was playing and scoring goals for them.

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“I think a few ex-players are jealous of what I’ve achieved at Celtic so far but I’ve still got a lot of business still to be done and a lot of goals to contribute. 

“When I first signed, people were questioning if I could cope, could I step up to the plate and score at certain levels? I keep knocking people back and proving people wrong. Most importantly, I need to keep proving to myself that I’m still available and willing to do the hard work and I’m still getting selected and can play at the top level.” 

This time last year there was an acceleration from Celtic as they returned from the winter break. Griffiths and Odsonne Edouard’s partnership has the hallmarks of a successful paring but from this summer onwards it has rarely had a chance to take root again. 

Edouard has shown only in glimpses the form he is capable of while Griffiths has significant work to do simply to win back the trust of his manager. Pairing the duo together for the next few months may yield goals but the gap at the top remains a significant ask to claw back with significant damage already done. 

“We knew we were in a difficult place last year but we came back from Dubai and absolutely blew everyone away. Again, it’s a big ask with the sizeable lead Rangers have got at the top of the league. But there’s no doubt in my mind that we can claw it back bit by bit. 

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“Since I came back that I’ve played well, tried to link up with Odsonne as much as I could and we’re winning games, albeit the Rangers game was a bit disappointing. But before that we were playing well, wining games and winning them comfortably. You get partnerships that you just click with somebody. 

“And for me and Odsonne, it was about trying to get that understanding as quickly as possible because we need it. You’ve seen what our partnership can produce – goals and assists. I’m looking forward to continuing to play with him.” 

The immediate ambitions are obvious but there are long-term aims, too.
Celtic need all three points from Hibs this evening with Griffiths keen to mark the night with another goal.

“Long-term that’s where you want to be – at a club like Celtic for eight, nine, 10 years, getting talked about in terms of testimonials and stuff,” he said. “It would be great but I’ve got a lot of hard work in front of me. 

“I think that’s very do-able [150 goals]. If I stay injury free, I’ll get chances and it’s just a question of putting them away. 

“It’s just about getting that consistent run of games. If I do, I’ll get the opportunities and it’s just a matter of sticking the ball in the back of the net. It might not be the first or second chance but the mixer that fall my way the more I’ll score.”