By Lewis Anderson

Copyright glasgowworld

Kelechi Iheanacho thought he was on the brink of a January transfer to Celtic before the deal collapsed and he ended up at Middlesbrough. However, the 28-year-old insists he always wanted to join the Scottish champions and reckons it’s a case of better late than never and converting a last-gasp pressure penalty on his debut to seal a 2-1 victory for Brendan Rodgers’ side against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Sunday. The former Manchester City and Leicester striker found himself without a club when the summer transfer window closed following his deadline day release from La Liga outfit Sevilla. But he wasn’t on the lookout for a new employer for long as Rodgers swooped to reunite with his former Foxes hitman. Iheanacho was handed a one-year contract, with the option to extend his stay in Glasgow’s east end by a further 12 months and it already looks a good fit for both parties. Asked about the collapsed move to Parkhead at beginning of the year, Iheanacho laughed: “We don’t need to talk about that now! We can just put that aside and move on for the future. “Of course, I always wanted to come to Celtic. It’s a massive club and I know the manager as well. It didn’t work at that time, but now I think it’s the right time.” Iheanacho made an immediate impact in Ayrshire by slotting home a 96th minute spot-kick to leave supporters wondering if he will prove to be the man to sort their lack of goals following the recent departures of Kyogo Furuhashi, Adam Idah and Nicolas Kuhn. Rodgers believes he will “only get better” as he improves his fitness levels and becomes more familiar with his new team-mates. The signs were promising after his 25-minute cameo against Killie, with the Nigerian hitman thrilled his gaffer had so much faith in him to step up and take the spot-kick deep into injury time. It was the first time Iheanacho had taken a penalty since scoring for Rodgers was against Manchester City in the 2021 Community Shield at Wembley. He added: “This is the moment that you have to celebrate with the fans because it’s a massive win, a massive three points. It deserved to be celebrated. “It was a massive feeling. Everyone was happy and I could see how happy the fans were and how they felt when they jumped on the pitch. To be fair, the captain asked if I wanted to take it and I said, ‘Yes’. So he said I could. “I’ve worked with the manager over the years and I’ve taken decisive penalties for him, as well as other clubs I’ve played for. He knows me as well, knows I am good on the spot, so he has really big confidence in me.” Iheanacho has played at the highest level in England and it’s clear that Rodgers has plenty of trust in him. It has been a challenging 12 months for the player, who suffered a major drop off in form. But he responded to those who were critical of his signing by racing into the crowd to celebrate with jubilant supporters after rifling high into the roof of the net from 12-yards. It was an outpouring of emotion from Iheanacho, who is desperate to show he’s good enough to pull on the green and white jersey week in, week out. And he already feels at home in a new environment. “If you watch the team, you know that there’s a lot of qualities in the team, a lot of great players as well,” he admitted. “Getting to know the boys, getting to train with them a lot and trying to connect with them, I’ve learned a lot in the last few days. “I think it will be a great season. I am looking forward to it. It’s a good start now and hopefully there will be a lot in the future.” Your next read: Celtic backed to make transfer move for ‘outstanding’ rival who previously roughed up Cameron Carter Vickers