DEDRYCK BOYATA is the sort of centre-half John Collins would love to have played with.

The new Celtic man is, according to his coach, a defender who really knows how to defend and one that can play football with the best them.

Not only that, but the Belgian is someone who likes the sound of his own voice on the pitch.

There is nothing about the former Manchester City man Collins does not like

The £1.5million signing will start for Celtic at St Mirren Park tonight against Den Bosch, the first of the three friendlies before the Champions League match against FC Stjarnan.

And the assistant manager believes the club's supporters are in for a treat because they have managed to sign a superb player.

Collins said: "I’m really looking forward to seeing Dedryck out there. I’ve really enjoyed working with him on the training pitch. He’s a quality player.

“I think the Celtic supporters will enjoy watching him. He’s very composed and technically very good.

“I’m looking forward to seeing him and I think he’s similar to Jason Denayer in that he’s very good on the ball and a good defender. Both are very good players.

“Jason was terrific for us at 19 years of age, but Dedryck has come in and is desperate to get playing first-team football.

"I can already see he’s a very good passer of the ball with great composure and good pace.

“He’s got to be hungry for that first-team and walking out of that tunnel. That’s what being a first-team player is all about.

“He hasn’t had a lot of that at Manchester City, so he’s delighted to be here and get started. He's delighted to be here and delighted to get started."

The word coming out of Lennoxtown is that the new Bhoy has really looked the part in training.

According to Collins, he also sounds the part.

Ronny Deila's No.2 said: "Dedryck is a very good talker on the pitch. Even on the first day of training he wasn’t quiet.

"Jason was younger and was very quiet. Dedryck is completely different. He is very vocal, which is so important when you play at the back and you have midfielders in front of you, full-backs right and left, you need to guide them.

"It’s a big part of being a defender. So you can tell he has that attribute.

“The most important thing is how he performs on the pitch. Off it he is quite quiet, which you would expect given that he’s just at the club and feeling his way in, getting to know the boys.

“You want eleven captains, eleven speakers on the pitch, pushing each other on. That’s the ideal scenario. You can get different types, but Dedryck is a talker."

Friendly games are usually not great things, however, Collins believes this evening's match will be a cut above the usual fare because instead of the season being a month and more away, the players have just two weeks to get themselves ready for their European campaign.

Collins said: "We look for everything in pre-season friendly games. We look for passing and movement, we look for good reactions, and you want your fitness, too.

“They have to get ready for the big Champions League games. If they play 45 minutes or 60 minutes, it has been at 100 per cent.

“That’s what we’ll ask, get your fitness and sharpness up.

“We won’t be strolling about. We don’t want to see any player strolling around the pitch any day. If you are going to get better, you give 100 per cent every day.

“Of course it will be hard in the first 30 minutes of the game, players getting a second breath and finding rhythm.

“But we’ve not had a long period off and we hope to see a good performance."

There will be a few named by Deila for this match whose days at Celtic are numbered.

Collins stated that everyone would be given the chance to impress, but actually gave off the distinct impression that the manager's mind was made up on the squad.

Collins said: "I would expect some guys will move on and some will come in; that’s the same for every football club.

"There are fringe players who want first-team football, but aren’t going to get it here, so they will be moving on without naming names.

"At any football club you get the chance to impress the manager and coaches every day. They will have that opportunity. We have three friendlies coming up."

Someone with nothing to prove is Charlie Mulgrew who is fit again after a season he would rather forget.

Collins said: "It’s fantastic Charlie is back and it was good news that he got the games for Scotland. That was important for him and us.

"He has come back fresh and it's another character in the dressing room and on the pitch. A good talker, a leader, so it is like a new signing.

“We missed him for six months last season; a long time for him and for us. He is so versatile, can play a number of positions and is very valuable to us.

“I think there is every chance we will try him at the back.

Virgil van Dijk is suspended for the first Champions League game so someone will be playing left beside Dedryck. Charlie has a chance of playing there."