Plenty has been said about Adam Idah during his short professional career, with some Celtic fans giving him a hard time throughout a 19-month stint in Glasgow that ended last Friday with a €7 million move to Swansea City.
“I found out the day before the [Old Firm] game, which was a bit of a crazy week to be honest,” said Idah after his 93rd-minute equaliser against Hungary saved the Republic of Ireland’s World Cup campaign from instant disaster.
“It’s going to be a fresh start for me. I’ve spoken with the staff there and the lads. I loved my time at Celtic. At first, I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to go and fight for my spot. I wanted to do well there.
“But Swansea have a great project and I know some of the staff there (including assistant coach and former Ireland international Darren O’Dea). What they think I can bring to the team is something I want to go and do. I spoke with the staff at Celtic and it seemed right.”
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The 24-year-old could do with relocating from Scotland to Wales as the more vocal fans at Celtic Park were never satisfied with his output. He scored 20 goals last season for Brendan Rodgers’ team, nine of them off the bench.
“There’s been so many [times] where I’ve won them games and got them qualified for things, like the [Scottish Cup] final. It probably goes unnoticed. It can be tough, you get a lot of hate. You might have a bad game and it’s torture. It’s a difficult place up there.
“But flip it the other way,” he quickly added, “you’re doing well and it’s the best place ever. I think that’s what it’s going to be like at any top club. You’ve just got to deal with that.
“Celtic is one of the biggest clubs in the world. It was a really proud moment for me, playing for them. Having done my time there, I have some great memories. I’ve got nothing bad to say about the club. It was an amazing experience for me to go and play there.
“To score 20 goals last season, coming off the bench, it kind of goes a bit unnoticed, but that’s football. It’s time to move on now and get a fresh start.”
Idah’s latest international goal brings his Ireland tally to six, which is the same total as Evan Ferguson, who also netted at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday night.
The difference is Idah lives off scraps, having scored three international goals as a substitute. Ferguson’s six came from being the main man in an Ireland side that continually fails to provide the type of supply both strikers need to click into double figures.
“I just want the team to win,” said Idah. “If I’m on the bench, I’m going to do what I did again. It’s about getting to the World Cup now.”
