Irish football coach and author Larry Mahoney has known Liam Scales since he was young, and he can't believe the Celtic stalwart now plays at centre-back.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Mahoney explained that Scales started out as a tricky winger, before being moved to play in defence.
He said: “People are always shocked to hear when I tell them — and you know this — Liam was a winger.
“Liam was a fantastic winger. Liam was an outside left when he was a kid.
“And I can remember his dad saying, ‘Come and watch Liam playing for the schools international team’, and I went.
“And I was absolutely shocked to find him playing centre-back! I couldn’t believe he was playing centre-back.
“Because he wasn’t just a winger, he wasn’t a push-and-run winger. He was a tricky winger, you know!
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“And now, the thing about it is: Liam, a couple of years ago, one of these graphics, or memes or whatever you young lads call it now, came out that Liam was the most successful passer in European football. I think it was the season before last.
“Now… when you’re Celtic’s centre-back, and most of the teams are dropping off in front of you, it’s not that hard to make successful passes.
“But the point I make about that was: Liam was in a team that spent all the way up to the under-10 season without doing any pass.
“Liam’s team, up to under-10, only dribbled. And all the parents were saying, ‘What, I thought this lad was a coach. This lad is mad!’
“They only dribbled. And it wasn’t until they hit the under-10 season, until they were mature enough to start thinking about other people, that Liam actually started passing.
“And now he’s the best passer in Europe!”
