KARAMOKO Dembele made his first team debut for Celtic today aged just 16 years and 88 days as the Parkhead club rounded off another successful league campaign with a narrow win.
The winger replaced Oliver Burke at the start of the second-half and received a huge ovation from the home support.
The diminutive youngster’s every touch was cheered by the huge crowd and chants of “there’s only one Karamoko Dembele” rang out around the stadium after he attempted a shot.
The London-born and Glasgow-raised prospect isn’t the youngest to make his competitive debut for the East End club in their 131-year history.
Jack Aitchison was 16 years and 71 days when he played and scored against Motherwell back in 2016.
But the Scotland Under-17 internationalist, who stands just 5ft 3in tall, looks an exciting talent capable of living up to the huge expectations there are of him in the game.
Dembele helped his side, who were presented with the Ladbrokes Premiership trophy for the eighth season running following the final whistle, win the game 2-1.
Mikey Johnston had given Celtic the lead in just the second minute only for Jake Mulraney to equalise for Hearts 16 minutes later.
The match looked to be heading for a draw until six minutes from the end of regulation time when Johnston burst forward and netted his second from the edge of the Hearts box.
There was a minute’s applause in memory of Stevie Chalmers, the Lisbon Lion who passed away earlier this month, before kick-off.
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