Alistair Johnson breaks Celtic transfer silence - 'my phone has been blowing up'

Eden Hazard of Belgium battles for possession with Alistair Johnston of Canada.

Talks between Celtic and Montreal CF are said to be at an advanced stage, with the reigning cinch Premiership champions expected to clinch the signature of the 24-year-old right-back in the coming days. In the meantime though, Johnston has to focus on his national team, with the defender currently in Qatar with Canada as they prepare for their second match of the group stage against Morocco on Sunday,

“Look, to be linked with a club like Celtic is obviously something that I think every footballer is excited by,” said Johnston. “I think it’s one of the most passionate fan bases in the world. It’s a club that even people who know follow football know who it is.

“So yeah, just getting linked with them – my phone’s been blowing up, literally broke my phone actually. It’s probably time to upgrade from the iPhone 10.

“People have told me that for the past couple of years now. That nearly pulled my phone out of commission halfway through the World Cup. So, look, I’m super excited to get linked with them, but right now the focus is just solely on the national team. We’ve done a good job of kind of blocking out the noise."