Youssouf Mulumbu hoping for Celtic stay

Youssouf Mulumbu says he still hopes to have a future at Celtic, despite being loaned out to Kilmarnock.

The midfielder made the switch to the Hoops’ Premiership rivals last month, joining until the end of the season.

First-team opportunities were struggling to come Mulumbu’s way, not helped by the meteoric rise of Ryan Christie in the middle of the park.

It is unknown whether the 32-year-old has a future at Parkhead but he is still holding out hope.

Mulumbu told the Scotsman that his relationship with Brendan Rodgers is healthy and he looks forward to proving himself in the summer:

I spoke with the manager at Celtic and he said that, if I could get some games by being on loan, he’d let me go.

We are on good terms and I came to Kilmarnock with confidence and a little bit of disappointment, so I need to show I’m a good player and that’s what I intend to do.

It’s a great club and my team-mates were amazing with me. I’m here for six months to help Kilmarnock and if I do everything right and if we achieve something very good, I know I’ll be back at Celtic in the summer and everything can change from there.

In my head, it’s not over at Celtic. If you speak with Brendan and the lads, they know I want to go back and do great things for them.

Mulumbu was named Man of the Match in Kilmarnock’s 0-0 draw with Rangers at the weekend, as his career at his new temporary club got off to a strong start.

Whether or not he is retained by Celtic after the summer remains to be seen, but an impressive stint at Killie would certainly do no harm to his chances.