Kenny keen to open account
Kenny Miller famously once scored five goals in a game against St Mirren – but the Celtic striker admits he would settle for just the one this weekend.
He has drawn a blank in his first two competitive games since arriving at Parkhead in the summer and is desperate to open his goalscoring account for his new club.
He helped create two goals in the 4-1 win against Kilmarnock on the opening day of the Bank of Scotland Premier League season, but he never looked like scoring as Celtic slumped to a 2-1 defeat at Hearts on Sunday.
Even so, Miller knows he has the potential to score goals. That rout over St Mirren was almost six years ago when he was trying to make his mark across the city with Rangers.
And, even though he knows such a scenario is unlikely to happen again, he believes one goal against Saints on Saturday could open the floodgates for the rest of the season.
“I would love to repeat that again, that’s for sure,” he said.
“That would get me right back into the goals. But that game seems like a long time ago.
“Looking back I’ve had a few high points in my career but scoring five goals in one match is a special achievement and something I’ll always remember.
“It’s not preying on my mind though, the fact that I haven’t scored yet. I still feel that once I get one goal, I’ll go on to get quite a lot.”
A double from Roman Bednar handed Hearts three crucial points at the weekend, with the second goal gifted from a dreadful Neil Lennon back pass.
It proved to be a bad day at the office all round for the Hoops skipper, who was dropped to the bench for the trip to Tynecastle, but Miller has assured him no one bears a grudge following the blunder.
“Straight away Lenny apologised to everyone in the dressing room even though there was no need to say anything to the lads,” he said.
“It could have happened to anybody – we all make mistakes on any given day.
“Unfortunately for him, and for us, the mistake he made cost us.
“That is just part and parcel of football and nobody is going to hold that against him.
“Nobody said anything negative to him afterwards, it was just a case of telling Lenny not to worry about it and keep his head up.
“He was just very apologetic because he knew it cost us the game which was disappointing at the end of the day.”
Miller insists the players are just as frustrated as the fans at dropping points so early in the season but he says there is no need to push the panic button.
“The fans wouldn’t be fans if they weren’t disappointed,” he said.
“But us as players, I know I hate getting beaten. Everybody else in that dressing room feels the same way but it is early doors.”
