Alex Valle admits Celtic is BIGGER than he thought as Barcelona loanee opens up on Greg Taylor rivalry

The left-back is enjoying a run in the team following his summer move

It's some culture shock going from Catalonia to getting clattered in the Scottish League Cup. But Alex Valle reckons he’s finally finding his feet at Celtic – and he’s ready to make his mark.

It’s been a dizzying first few weeks for the borrowed Barcelona full back. He was handed a debut against Falkirk and ended up face first in the dirt a couple of times in a brutal introduction to Scottish football. He dusted himself down to impress after coming on in the second half in the Champions League drubbing in Dortmund and then looked the part in the last-gasp win in Dingwall. Valle has been waiting for his big chance and with regular left back Greg Taylor injured for next week’s showdown with Aberdeen, the Spanish kid is ready to slot in and stake his claim.

The 20-year-old revealed Taylor has been massive in helping him settle and he reckons the friendly rivalry can only benefit the team. Valle said: “I don’t know Greg’s situation. I don’t actually mind. I just try to work for myself, and if I have the opportunity to play, I will give my best every game. I don’t mind if it’s Aberdeen or if it’s another team.

“For me, every weekend I try my best and that’s it. It’s a healthy competition. Greg has helped me a lot since I came here. Obviously, for the position, he can advise me really well. He’s a really good friend.”

Valle thought he knew Celtic were a big club before he arrived from the Nou Camp. But he admitted he didn’t quite comprehend just how big.

It’s another thing Valle has had to get his head around – along with the Scottish weather. He said: “If I had to pick one thing that has surprised me I would choose that the club is maybe even bigger than I thought.

“I thought it wasn’t quite so big and I didn’t expect such an atmosphere like the one at Paradise. The level of the game here in training and in each game as well is awesome. So I’m really happy. I like living in Scotland. The weather is getting worse every day.

“I have to wait until November, December. They told me that! It’s a good city, it’s a really good city and I’m enjoying it.

“Obviously, I have close friends from Barcelona, who I talk with every week. Then family as well, coming here and enjoying it as well. So I’m happy personally.”

It wasn’t quite so enjoyable on that frantic debut against Falkirk. Boss Brendan Rodgers described it as a crash course in British football, and Valle has got the full Celtic Scottish experience in recent weeks from Parkhead to Perth, then Dortmund to Dingwall, with a jaunt across the Irish Sea for a friendly with Sligo Rovers to round it off.

Valle said: “Well, it was all kinds of emotions, because Celtic plays a style of football that everyone knows is different from the standards of nowadays. So mixing that with playing in a more physical league, it was a mix of everything but I think I’ve been settling in here very well. I’m feeling confident.

“I’m just trying to adapt, to follow the instructions. I’m trying to see what I do wrong in every game, in every training session, so that I can be better here. I knew already when I came here that there were lots of matches but it’s great for a young player like me. I want the most minutes I can get.

“There are a lot of contrasting games, that actually explains it really well. We have played in a lot of different places in the last few weeks in the league, in the cup and in Europe.

“It was a bit step by step. I started in the cup, trying to see where my position was, to be better. Then I came into the Champions League and then into the league. I’m trying to feel better every game.”

It does seem that way on the pitch. Valle looked the part in the hard-fought win at Ross County and was one of the few to emerge with any credit from the Borussia Dortmund battering. The youngster came on after the interval when Celts were already 5-1 down and the second period was not quite as savage.

Valle said: “Well, maybe. I had a good appearance. The result was really tough to take. It was a difficult situation to come in to but if I was there I just told myself that I was confident I could do well.”

Valle got another 45 minutes under his belt in Sligo where a fringe Celtic side scored a couple of late goals to seal a win at the Showgrounds and get set for next week’s Dons clash. He said: “The good thing that we can take is that we fought till the end, with everyone involved.”

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