BY the time James Forrest is done with football there will be few other players in Celtic history with more medals.

He already has 13 of the winning kind with number 14 perhaps just a few weeks away. And as he has no intention of leaving a club he just so happens to support, and given the way the wind is blowing right now, that tally could easily get to double figures.

Forrest is a winger. Ergo, he is a streaky player. It comes with the territory. But when this guy is on his game, what a game it is to watch.

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He scored his first goal against Rangers on Sunday, the delight on his face and clutching of the badge told you what it meant, and this has been by bar far his best season with 17 goals and counting.

And to think, when the Ronnie Delia experiment was going wrong, he was almost out the door. This is the perfect example of the Brendan Rodgers affect.

When asked about that time when he refused to sign a new deal and was all-but off the England, Forrest said: "It was maybe made into more than it actually was. My contract was down to the last six months. I maybe could have left.

"But in my head I always wanted to stay here. Once the gaffer came in, I made that clear. I was buzzing when he arrived.

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"I haven’t looked back since signing that deal and getting that out of the way. Celtic is a massive club. I have always wanted to stay here as long as I can. I will keep working hard to make that happen.”

Forrest has been attached to Celtic so long it's w onder he didn't have a contract when he was a foetus.

Now 26, this awfully likeable guy has grown as a person and a footballer, and knows that he didn't get here by himself.

"I owe a lot to the coaches who helped me when I was coming through," said Forrest. "But above all I owe Neil Lennon for giving me my debut.

"Not a lot of managers give young kids debuts, so I definitely have him to thank.

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"And there is my family as well. You can’t do it without your family behind you. International coaches, too. There are so many. I don’t think it is fair to name just one or two.

"I always remember coaches telling me, as I came through the youth ranks, that not many players make it, especially at a club like Celtic. That very few come right through. The dream is to make your debut and after that you want more. I just want to keep going.”

Anyone who meets James Forrest wants him to do well.

He is one one of the good guys, utterly without a hit for himself, and does seem to have enough about him to know that these are extraordinary times to be enjoyed.

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For this Celtic fan to score against Rangers on the day hiss team won the league is, well, beyond dreams.

As he said: "It’s unbelievable. To win it on Sunday at home in front of all our fans was incredible. The atmosphere from kick-off right to the end was fantastic.

"The fans all stayed to the end. It is a dream come true to play so many games and win so many titles. It just makes you hungry to win even more when you see scenes like we had on Sunday."