Mohamed Elyounoussi has his sights set on Champions League football after helping Celtic take a step towards the tournament proper with a double in the 6-0 win against KR Reykjavik.
The 26-year-old Norway winger returned to Parkhead in the summer for a second loan spell from Southampton and showed at Celtic Park on Tuesday night just why he had been brought back with the first and last goals in a one-sided first-round qualifier against the Icelandic minnows.
Christopher Jullien, Greg Taylor and Odsonne Edouard were also on target, with the visitors scoring an own goal through defender Arnor Adalsteinsson, as Celtic set up a second qualifier, also one-legged, against Ferencvaros or Djurgarden next week.
Man-of-the-match Elyounoussi said: “All players want to play at the highest level as possible and the Champions League is amazing.
“I really want to experience it with Celtic, hopefully in front of our fans.
“I know those nights here at Celtic Park are amazing.
“I heard it is a few years since Celtic played in the Champions League.
“It is a huge goal for us. We are going to try everything to reach that goal and obviously the cup and the league as well.
“We have the squad for it, we believe in our manager and coaching team, so this was a good result and we need to focus on the next one.”
The former Molde and Basel attacker believes that there is “more to come” from Neil Lennon’s men.
“I am an offensive player, I like to create chances and score goals,” he said.
“So obviously I am happy to help the team to win the game. I should have scored a hat-trick but hopefully next time.
“We played with confidence and got the clean sheet. It was a good performance.”
Elyounoussi was glad to see his former Basel team-mate Albian Ajeti, the Swiss striker recently signed from West Ham, come off the bench in the second half to make his debut and hopes they will form a potent partnership again.
He said: “He just came a few days ago. He will need some time to get fit.
“But he is a strong player physically, smart player, very clever in front of goal.
“He had a few assists for me, I had a few assists for him when we played together.
“When he gets fit and gets confidence, I am sure he will score some goals here.
“We know each other well – if we both play we know what to expect from each other.”
