Oliver Sorensen is desperate for a taste of the winning formula at Celtic and he's determined to add a little McSauce of his own. The Danish midfielder checked into Parkhead on a season-long loan deal from Parma with a view to a permanent deal next summer.
He revealed he's taken inspiration from Scotland's Serie A star Scott McTominay. Sorensen went up against the Tartan Army hero's Napoli twice last term and held the then champs to a goalless draw in Naples followed by a 1-1 statement in Parma – where McTominay's goal snatched a point. He admitted the super Scot is the kind of midfield powerhouse he looks up to.
Learning from McTominay
Sorensen said: “Napoli didn’t beat Parma but McTominay did score against us when we played them at home. He has had great success in the Italian league and he is a good player. McTominay has great timing getting into the box and I have watched videos of him to see if that helps. He is very good at it and I can learn from what he does. I like to play box to box and make late runs into the box, so I can be there when the ball drops. I am a hard working player and always do my best for the team. I am at my best when I have playmakers beside me.”
Sorensen was a regular at Parma last season but he admitted there was something that never quite suited him with the Serie A side. At previous club Midtjylland, the 24-year-old was a box-to-box midfielder, but the emphasis was on getting forward and attacking the opposition. It was a different story at Parma. The Italian giants might have a famous past, but they face a different struggle these days and the target is to remain in the top flight.
Why he jumped at the Celtic move
Sorensen went from being on the front foot to backs to the wall – and it never sat easy. That's why he leapt at the chance to join Celtic when the initial calls came a few weeks ago and he was thrilled to get the deal done in the nick of time. Sorensen said: “For me, there was maybe a mismatch of how we played (at Parma). We played very defensive and closed games. Parma is not like Celtic. It was more about staying up in the league. We played more not to lose, instead of to win. The games were closed and we didn’t have the ball a lot. I felt that I could do more if I got to a big club like Celtic. At Midtjylland I played in an attacking team, one of the best in the league, and you were expected to win and dominate opponents. I missed that part of football and I would like to think Celtic suits me better. You are expected to win all the games and that suits me more.”
If Sorensen likes to attack, then he's come to the right place. Celtic have started the season on fire in the Premiership, smashing 11 goals in their first four unbeaten matches. Fellow Dane Kasper Hogh has bagged three of them and the playmaker is looking forward to hooking up with his countryman – even if he's a lot quieter than the striker.
Settling in with fellow Danes
Sorensen said: “I think I am little more shy than him! But we definitely compliment each other. I played against Kasper a long time ago at youth level but everyone in Denmark knows his story and from his time at Bodo and all the way to the national team. I am pleased to be able to play with him now and it’s always nice to have another Danish guy around. I think it’s going to be easy to adapt to playing in Scotland as it’s a lot like Denmark – especially the weather! The mentality is a bit like Scandinavian as well, so that should help me get into the routine. There’s a bit of a rivalry with the other guys (Swede Benjamin Nygren and Finland’s Viljami Sinisalo) and we all think our country is the best, but I’m sure we will get on okay!”
Sorensen is determined to impress with Celts – and hopefully follow Hogh into the Denmark national team. He said: “It’s a dream for everyone to play for their country, and it’s an ambition of mine. Right now it’s about settling at Celtic, playing some games and we’ll see what happens. It’s definitely a better chance here than in Italy as I’ll be able to show my qualities more here. We’ll see what happens but it’s definitely a goal.”
Sorensen got his first sample of Parkhead with his cameo in Wednesday night’s 3-0 win against Aberdeen and relished the big match atmosphere. But away from the pitch, the Dane prefers the quite life. He said: “I like to be out in nature, going for walks and enjoying the outside. I don’t really like living in the city, I prefer to be outside. I’ll be looking for an apartment in the next few weeks so it might be nice to be close to nature. I’ve heard Glasgow can be a very intense football city, so it will be nice to have a place to live where you can relax and take your mind off things.”
Sorensen likes to keep a low profile away from the game but he's happy to take centre stage on match day. And he admitted he's desperate to show Celtic fans his trademark Superman celebration from his time with Midtjylland. He said: “I’m still doing it, but I haven’t scored that many goals lately. I hope I am showing it again soon.”
