Celtic hand full-time professional contract to 15-year-old sensation Karamoko Dembele
What were you doing at 15?
Not playing professional football, I'd imagine. Not Karamoko Dembele, though. He's got much bigger fish to fry after Celtic handed the teenage sensation his first full-time professional contract with the club.
Dembele - no relation to Mousa or Moussa - has put pen to paper on a deal that will keep him at Celtic until 2021, by which time he will be... 18.
The winger first made a name for himself when October 2016 when he made his debut for Celtic's under-20 development team at the age of 13.
Since then he has represented both Scotland and England at youth level, having been born in London to Ivorian parents before moving to Glasgow as a baby.
#KaramokoSigns 😎
🆕📝 Karamoko Dembele has signed his first full-time professional contract with #CelticFC, in a deal that sees him remain at Paradise until at least 2021.https://t.co/wsGY73Yodh pic.twitter.com/4MlppIOCWq— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) December 24, 2018
The teenager will wear the number 77 for the Hoops.
#CelticFC's number 7⃣7⃣...
Merry #Christmas, Celts! 🍀⚪️ pic.twitter.com/92q1XjmHQd— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) December 24, 2018
"It means a lot to me to start my professional career at Celtic," Dembele told the club's website.
"I came here at a young age, and, after all the stuff me and family have been through together, it’ll be good to make them proud."
"I’d like to say thank you to everyone, and I’d like to thank everyone for everything they’ve done for me. I’d also like to thank everyone for the training I’ve received, the discipline I’ve been taught, and the advice I’ve been given all the way."
