The manager, though, didn’t reserve his praise only for those who have come through the ranks in the East End of Glasgow.

He also waxed lyrical when asked about a player who was raised over 7,000km from Celtic Park, Canadian internationalist, Alistair Johnston

The manager said: “He possesses so many qualities – his hunger to win, he has a robustness, his power, his strength and he is hard to beat in one-v-one.

“And he now totally understands how I want him to work, so he is now able to release himself, and can march, he can go forward and test the mentality of his marker.

“And you see him now, he’s scoring goals and creating goals. But, ultimately, he can defend well.

“He has that hunger to defend, and he’s a really good guy, so I really enjoy working with him, and he will still only get better.

“When you think of his journey back home, and then in the MLS, and then to here and being an international player, so he’s only going to improve and I can see that in him in my time here.”

The manager will send his team out against a Hearts side who haven’t had their troubles to seek in the results department this term despite a positive showing last season.

However, Brendan Rodgers and his players know these are early days yet, and Steven Naismith’s have the ability to turn the tide.

The Irishman said: “In terms of points, it’s probably been a challenge for Steven, and obviously European football as well.

“But they will improve, it’s still very early on in the season. I believe I’m right in saying Steven signed a new contract in the summer, so he feels clearly appreciated and wanted by the club.

“So they clearly want him and they want him to continue with the work, they are a big club, so they’ll be expected to improve.

“I’m pretty sure they will, so, for me, we just have to be ready for a really good game, we’re in the mood to keep our performance level as high as we possibly can, and I can see us making it really, really difficult for them in the game tomorrow.”

The manager’s full press conference:

Coming back after the break
Arne Engels making his international debut
Strength-in-depth for the squad
Freshness and energy in the pool
Celtic’s defensive strategy
Reo Hatate’s international hopes

Match Centre

Follow the build-up and all the Hearts match action live on the official Celtic FC Match Centre.

Manager praises his leader on the pitch – Callum McGregor