Celtic's Adam Idah could be a Giakoumakis-Kyogo hybrid

Twice he has turned out to be the matchwinner.

Adam Idah reignited Celtic's title charge at Fir Park in the 3-1 win over Motherwell. The Republic of Ireland internationalist scored his second brace for the champions in Lanarkshire. It was his first two goals for the club from open play.

There wasn't much fanfare of trumpets when Idah arrived in the January window. The supporters wanted Bojan Miovski from Aberdeen not the third-choice striker from Norwich City. Those words were cruel and harsh in the extreme. Idah kept his cool to fire home an injury-time spot-kick in the white-hot heat of Easter Road to give Celtic a priceless 2-1 win in the capital just as Rodgers's side looked as though they might spill crucial Scottish Premiership points.

He had tucked away his first goal from 12 yards earlier in the evening. Brendan Rodgers had inadvertently solved a penalty problem in the process after Celtic had passed up the opportunity from the spot on no more than four occasions this season. It's easy to see why the Northern Irishman brimming with confidence, enthusiasm and excitement about Idah. Now we know exactly why.

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Rodgers said in the aftermath of the Hibs victory: “It’s fair to say I’m excited about working with Adam and trying to take his game to the next level. I had seen him play live in the Premier League with Norwich and I saw a young player with that real potential.

“Being Irish, obviously that caught my eye as well. It just hasn’t quite worked out for him yet but when you see someone with that physicality, speed and technique, it excites you. You saw how he took those two penalties. It was with authority and composure. When I see all of that, it always excites me. He’s got all the tools there. It’s now about trying to help him get the mentality you need to be a top player."

"People will ask me, ‘How far can he go?’ Well, he has the talent to go to the very highest level. But it’s about what he does with it. There are players with the same talent as Adam but they’re playing on local pitches on a Sunday afternoon. He wants to get in behind teams and hurt people. He’s starting to understand our game idea which is suited perfectly to Adam’s qualities.

"When I went to Liverpool, they said Luis Suarez didn’t score enough goals and he then finished two seasons with 30-plus goals by narrowing his game. He’s spoken publicly about the work I did with him. Coming to Celtic (the first time), I had good strikers in Moussa Dembele and Leigh Griffiths. Whatever position it is, it’s about the talent they’ve got.

“If the player shows me he cares and wants to do it – I can maximise a lot from them. He’s a clever guy. I had a couple of good chats with him before he came in. I needed to find out about his hunger. I know enough about his background and I spoke to enough people about him. At the age he’s at, he still has so much ahead of him.

"Sometimes the pressure of a club like Celtic can bring the best out of you. You see the type he is, he wants that pressure. So I’ve got no doubt he can do very well for us."

From the manager who turned Suarez, Dembele and Griffiths into goalscoring machines at Liverpool and Celtic respectively it was high praise indeed for a largely untried and untested Idah.

Yet Idah's double at Fir Park was reminiscent of two Celtic strikers. Greg Taylor's cross from the left was perfection and Idah's towering bullet header into the net for the equaliser on 51 minutes in Lanarkshire was pure Giorgos Giakoumakis-esque. It was a beautiful goal and a rare time this season when Celtic have actually forced the issue and made something happen.

Even Chris Sutton marvelled at the beauty of Idah's leveller. On Sky Sports, Sutton said: "I tell you what. What a header this is. A towering header. The ball is perfect from (Greg) Taylor...I can't tell you how good this header is. The direction, the power, absolutely stunning - Celtic back in it!" Sutton, John Hartson and super Swede Henrik Larsson would have been proud of that themselves in their pomp and ceremony with the men in green and white.

That physicality and quickness of movement to dart in between two defenders and bury a header were evident for the equaliser. The Celtic fans have long lamented the fact that they to date not been able to replace the prolific and popular Greek attacker. Hold that thought. Remember the Greek striker was written off himself after missing from the spot in a 0-0 draw against Livingston but that's another story.

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Idah is more than just a target man. Like Giakoumakis, he is actually a very good footballer. His close control and link-up play are also excellent. He possesses the ability to hold defenders off as well as play people in and score goals just as Giakoumakis did. What's not to like?

Idah made an instant impact when he came off the bench at Fir Park to spark the second-half Celtic fightback. He showed great hunger and desire to outjump his marker and power a header into the net. In that instant, Idah inspired. He lifted everybody around him when his club needed him most. His manager, teammates and supporters all climbed off the canvas.

Idah showed that he was up for the title fight and would do everything for the jersey. The same cannot be said of many of Rodgers's current charges, He is slowly going about proving the whole Celtic fan base wrong. The Celtic supporters can't help themselves though as they have found a new goalscoring hero.

It is at such moments that title run-ins can swing. Watch this space. It gave Celtic a vital spark. Can it act as the catalyst for Rodgers's men to regain the title initiative? Indeed it was the sign of better things to come.

Ironically the second goal in the 94th minute was pure Kyogo Furuhashi. It was the kind of trademark meat and drink goal that the Japanese talisman made his name under the former manager's regime.

Having replaced Kyogo at half-time Celtic then started to play with a style that would have suited him down to the ground. Balls were being fed out wide and crossed were being delivered with accuracy and whipped in at pace.

If the first goal was about physicality then the second was all down to speed and technique. It was a thing of beauty. Alistair Johnston's centre from the right flank was just begging for the finishing touch to be applied. Step forward Idah. To have the quickness of thought to make the near-post run and then allow the ball to pass from his right foot to his left foot before side-footing home is delicious. Watch it back.

It's Idah's technique that makes it look so easy. Allowing for the fact that it could have been the last chance of the game Idah showed calmness, coolness and composure personified to tuck away the clinching goal. Some players thrive and handle the Glasgow goldfish bowl of pressure. Idah is certainly one of them. His vital statistics are impressive. Played five games. Started three. Scored four goals. Provided one assist.

Rodgers may have inadvertently stumbled upon something here once again. Has Rodgers unwittingly unearthed a hybrid of Giakoumakis and Kyogo?

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Goals win games. Goals win titles. With Idah spearheading Celtic's attack then it would be foolish to write off the chances of the men from Glasgow's east end making it three-in-a-row.

If Idah can continue his rich vein of scoring form and he does lead Celtic to a Scottish Premiership and Scottish double then the club will be forced to ask the question of Norwich City when the loan deal expires in the summer. Memo to Celtic: Never fall in love or grow attached to a loan player. It usually ends in heartache.

For the time being Celtic and Rodgers should just enjoy the hybr-Idah.