Christian Nade is a man accustomed to hearing about – and discussing – his weight.

The first question directed at him from the media tends to focus on his physique, and the barbs from opposition fans are so frequent that they roll off his back without a second thought.

When one of his own ‘supporters’ had a go at him during his spell with Dundee last year, though, a fire was lit under Nade, and now he’s a man on a mission to prove he can finally succeed in the Scottish top flight after knuckling down to win a contract at Hamilton.

He explained: “When I arrived at Dundee I was injured, and came back to play in a reserve game.

“My brother sent me a comment from a fan who said I was fat, and it really hurt me. This was the first time it actually hurt me, and I’ve gone to the gym from that day and I’ve never left.

“I thought ‘I need to work now’, and it’s changed my life. I should thank them! My body changed and my performances changed, so I thought ‘okay, this is the right way’. My weight is okay now and I’ve only got 10% body fat.

“I’m really focused on football now and only football. My routine goes training, home, training, home. I wanted to show the coach [Martin Canning] that I was worth a deal, so I worked really hard and I’m really happy that he’s offered me a contract.

“I always knew that I would come back to the SPFL at some point, and I’m going to work really hard to prove I can score goals at this level. I’m really proud of myself, and it’s maybe the first time.”

Nade, who scored just eight goals in a three-year spell at Hearts, also accepts responsibility for his poor form throughout that period.

Fans can be willing to forgive some limitations in a player if they are seen to be putting in the effort, but in Nade’s case, that wasn’t always evident.

“Hearts was a complicated situation,” he explained. “I should only have stayed for six months. Crystal Palace made an offer and I wanted Hearts to let me go and they didn’t, so when you’re in this situation as a player it’s difficult.

“Every six months they would come back and make another offer and Hearts still didn’t want to let me go, so I wasn’t thinking straight.

“I feel bad because I never gave 100 per cent. I tried, but when you’re not in the right mindset it’s difficult. Everything is my fault. My career should have been different.

“When I was younger at Hearts I wasn’t really bothered in training, because I knew that I would play. If someone took my position, I would just work hard for one or two weeks and I’d be back in the team.

“Now I want to work hard every day, there are no days off for me. That’s the difference between the old Christian and the new one.”