The 13-year-old 'wonderkid' now plying his trade in League One

The thing about being a young prodigy is that you appear to be frozen in time; everyone remembers you as you were back then.

And when Karamoko Dembele burst on to the collective consciousness, he made a lasting impression. He was just 13 when he stepped out for Celtic’s Under-20s side and in the photograph of him as he came on as substitute, he barely reached the fourth official’s chest.

He looked so small, so out of place, you could only imagine there had been a huge administrative error. In truth, at the time there was a bit of an injury and fixture pile-up in Celtic’s youth ranks, he was brought in because others were absent. But as soon as word got out of his appearance, the assumption quickly took hold that this was the footballing equivalent of the second coming, that a rare talent had been unearthed.

Looking back on that moment seven years on, Dembele, who has just signed on loan for Blackpool in League One, is philosophical.

“I didn’t think about it until people made a thing of it, I just thought it was normal,” he recalls of his extraordinary debut. “I used to play in an older age group anyway, I always played a couple of years up when I was coming through. So I didn’t think it was crazy. Until people made a fuss. With social media and stuff it becomes a bigger deal than you yourself actually think at the time. It made it more of a thing than it was worth.”

Nevertheless, the young lad who was born in Lambeth, south London but whose parents moved to Glasgow when he was just one, was accelerated through the Celtic system. A quick, agile, intelligent playmaker, at 16, he signed his first professional contract. Almost immediately, in 2019 he earned himself a Scottish Cup winners medal, albeit as an unused substitute. He seemed not so much destined for the top as already there.

“When I was younger things were just happening,” he says in his broad Glaswegian accent. “You just, like, live in the moment, it happens around you. It’s not like you think: oh this is it, this is how it’s going to be.”

Which is just as well. Because sadly, it wasn’t to be. Injury curtailed his advance. He was still training with the Celtic first team squad, but his game time became vanishingly infrequent.

“You need to play,” he says. “At a point when you’ve just been training it can get a bit repetitive. Games are enjoyable with the fans and everything that is at stake. That’s what gives it meaning. Looking back you talk about games you played, not the training sessions.”

With his development seemingly stalled, Celtic did not renew his contract. And at 18, he moved to France to play for Brest. Though once there, in a side struggling at the foot of Ligue 1, the progress was not as he wished. He only made 16 appearances in the first team.

“My journey is difficult. I’ve been spoken about since I was 13, but haven’t had the opportunity to prove it,” he suggests. “Everyone’s different, some people mature quicker, some might mature at 29. But I’ve learned a lot. I was living alone in France, I’ve matured as a person and player. I’m always open to learning.”

His latest learning experience came a couple of weeks ago when he received a call from Neil Critchley, the manager of Blackpool in League One. Would he be interested in signing for the club on a season long loan?

“When I first spoke with the manager, everything he was saying made me think this could be the place,” he says. “He was the main factor in signing. He seems like a top manager, he was at Liverpool and stuff, I’ve heard good things. I hope he’s going to give me the opportunity to show him what I can do.”

And what he can do is exhilarating: quick, sharp and full of ambition, he remains a formidable talent. Though League One is a tough taskmaster for someone who, despite representing England age group teams, has never played a league match in this country.

“My brother [Siriki, the Birmingham City winger] has played at this level before, he’s told me. He said: if you’re in a side that tries to play in the right way, you’ll enjoy it. I’ll just be happy to play football. I’m not thinking ahead too much.”

Even after remaining on the bench for Blackpool’s win over Wigan on Saturday, he is hoping that finally he might be able to deliver on the expectation placed on the shoulders of that tiny 13 year old.

“I think the problem is people still judge me from when I was younger,” he says. “I’ve forgotten about that. And mainly for myself I need to prove I can do it in a first team environment. I’ve been needing a full season for the last couple of years. But I’ve just not been able to get it. In football things happen, you have to deal with it. I’m hoping with this move I can get the best out of myself.”

And at least the surrounds are conducive. After all, tens of thousands every summer make the journey from Glasgow to Blackpool for a bit of fresh air and fun.

“I’d never been here before,” he says of the town. “But growing up I’d heard a lot about it. I know there’s a lot of Scottish people come here. I hope if they come to watch me when they’re here they’ll be entertained.”

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbHLnp6rmaCde6S7ja6iaJ6fpMGjrculZmtoYmh8cYWOaWtoo5Gnrq67yqhknZ2dl7KtsYxqamaxlZa%2FbrvLnWSwp56ZsrO3yJ1kqaSRrravs4ylnJqfpZp6sLrEaA%3D%3D