"I'm treating it exactly the same as I did at Hibs," he told Scotland on Sunday. "I'm just getting in about it and getting on the ball. The gaffer said when he signed me that there would be a lot of competition for places and that if I don't play my game, I won't be in the team.

"There's a demand to produce your best form but I wouldn't say that's any different to what I was used to at Hibs. John Collins would just as easily have taken me out the team if I wasn't performing, so I don't think that's a new thing for me to handle."

Asked to describe the biggest difference thus far between Celtic and Hibs, "there's a lot more folk at training" was, initially, the best he could muster.

"It's been good so far, getting my fitness up and that. The lads are getting there slowly and I have to say it's been really hard work. The training has been hard but I've enjoyed it - that's exactly what we need at this stage and training is supposed to be hard in pre-season. We're all being pushed in order to get us fit for the season.

"But all the guys have been brand new. They all want the ball and they can all pass it. I've really enjoyed working with them. The team creates a lot more. I'm going to enjoy that."