When Scott Allan moved along the M8 from Edinburgh to Glasgow last month, pulling on the hoops of his new club was not the only requirement; along with the new kit came a flak jacket and tin helmet.

The boyhood Rangers fan incurred the wrath of the Ibrox support – after having spent the previous few weeks receiving vitriolic abuse, including a death threat, from Hibernian supporters when he had publicly requested a transfer from Leith to Ibrox – when Celtic signed him from under the nose of Rangers.

It was not quite in the same league as the infamous saga around Maurice Johnstone’s move to Ibrox but it spawned a similar insidious sentiment. After one bilious tweet too many, he made the sensible decision to announce his retirement from the social media site. And it has been with some caution that the 23-year-old has spent the preceding weeks in and around his home city.

“You can be a little bit worried when you are out yourself because you don’t know who is about, but you try not to live your life feeling that way,” he acknowledged.

“I’m from Glasgow and know a lot of people around me so I’m not expecting any trouble to be fair. My friends and family have been really supportive. It’s not been as bad as I thought it might be. There’s been quite a lot of banter from folk so it’s not been as bad as I thought.

“I keep my head down anyway and don’t let myself get involved in any situations. I use Instagram but I’ve not used Twitter since I’ve been here. It’s not worth the hassle of being on there and reading the abuse so I’ve avoided it.”

Off the field issues aside, Allan’s immediate challenge now is to ensure he asks a question of Ronny Deila. The versatile midfielder will look to make an impression upon Celtic’s first-team over the coming weeks and, with a Europa League campaign on the immediate horizon, he will seek some kind of role as the Parkhead side look to overcome Ajax, Fenerbahce and Molde.

The player featured for Celtic in an under-20 game this week as he sought to sharpen his match fitness and having being restricted so far to two appearances from the bench, Allan can appreciate that he will have to be patient as he awaits a run in the Celtic team, particularly since there are an abundance of attacking midfielders at the club.

While the Europa League still feels like a consolation prize for a Celtic side who should have been good enough to make it into the group stages of the UEFA Champions League, Allan has offered some kind of perspective on the prospect of featuring in the competition.

“I was going to Alloa away last year so the prospect of Ajax and Fenerbahce – massive clubs – is great for me. There are still some good ties,” he said. “When it comes to these games everyone wants to do well. There’s a chance to show how good you are in big fixtures.

“That’s why you come to clubs like Celtic to play big games. It’s disappointing to go out the Champions league but we have three games now that are good for the fans and the players. There are a lot of fixtures with Europa league and Cups and I’m sure there will be chances. When they come along I have to take it.”

For the moment, though, domestic concerns take precedence. Celtic travel to Pittodrie on Saturday at lunchtime with Allan insisting that the remit of Deila’s side is to underline Celtic’s superiority against a side who were their keenest rivals last term.

There was little love lost between the backroom teams of Celtic and Aberdeen last term and given the fact that Aberdeen’s four domestic defeats to the Parkhead side were so instrumental in Deila’s men winning the title, the stage is set for the most intriguing contest of the SPFL season to date.

“It is always a hard game going to Pittodrie,” said Allan. “Over the last few years they have built a really good team with a good bench. We need to go up there and win and put a marker down for the rest of the season.”

Celtic aside, Allan took in the Scotland game at Hampden from the stand on Monday evening. The next level will be attracting the attention of Gordon Strachan but for now he is content with having one boss to please. “My first step is just getting into the Celtic team week in, week out and take it from there,” he said.

*Scott Allan was promoting match packages for Celtic's forthcoming Europa League campaign against Ajax, Fenerbahce and Molde.