"Celtic is a massive club but it’s small as a family inside it and he’ll find that the Celtic family is like no other."

Those were the words of Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers as he welcomed Kasper Schmeichel to the club after the 4-0 victory over DC United. Rodgers could have applied the same uplifting speech to German winger Nicolas Kuhn. One game does not make a season, granted. However, in light of Kuhn's dynamic performance against English Premier League champions Manchester City in the 4-3 win in North Carolina - where he bagged a brace and produced a world-class pass to set up Kyogo Furuhashi for his strike.

It's safe to say that Kuhn has endured a lot since he signed in the January transfer window from Rapid Vienna for £3 million. The former Ajax and Bayern Munich prodigy revealed in stark detail the agonising dental surgery that left him unable to eat for 12 days just weeks before arriving in Glasgow. The incredible weight loss left him at a loss as to why he seemed physically fit to play but his body kept breaking down on him.

The wide man nevertheless made 18 appearances under Rodgers in the last campaign and contributed three goals - one of which was a crucial equaliser in the Scottish Cup semi-final over Aberdeen at Hampden in April - that belied his undoubted talents. Ironically earlier this month it was Kuhn who uttered these words ahead of the tour of the USA when asked if the Celtic supporters had yet to see the best of him. The 24-year-old said: "It feels like my Celtic career starts now.

"That is the goal. I want to have a good pre-season, stay fit and show everyone. I hope it’s time for the real thing after the introduction. Of course, I am not there yet. I had a couple of good games but I have to show every game. That's the main thing."

His display against Manchester City will do for starters. Even Rodgers was moved to enthuse about Kuhn in the aftermath of the victory against Pep Guardiola's men. When asked if Kuhn could push on this season, Rodgers said: "Hopefully, in the first year, he was adapting but he has come back looking really sharp. The moves for the goals were outstanding.

"Some of the football to play through City's press was excellent. We built it up really well despite their pressure. He finished his two goals really well. His pass for the third goal was magical. The outside of the right foot and it had to travel a long distance, so two goals and an assist for him was great."

Rodgers also gave a unique insight as to what he and his staff had also been getting up to since embarking on the Stateside tour with another throwaway line when he said: "Myself and the coaches were focused on the improvement of this team, physically, tactically and technically."

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Celtic manager Rodgers praises 'magical' winger performance

This recent Kuhn quote is relevant following Man City win

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Nobody has epitomised or embraced 'physically, tactically, and technically' more than Kuhn. Based on the evidence against City, Kuhn hasn't just raised his levels by all accounts. He has totally metamorphosed into a genuine footballer. The player that Celtic originally thought they had signed back in January. Kuhn looked reborn.

Take Kuhn's first goal for example. You could be forgiven for thinking you had travelled back in time to the Champions League qualifiers in 2001 against one of Kuhn's former clubs Ajax - in the Amsterdam ArenA to be precise.

Martin O'Neill's men swashbuckled their way to a 3-1 first-leg victory in Holland. The second goal that night was scored by Didier Agathe but it is a carbon copy of Kuhn's opening goal against Manchester City. Watch them both. For Henrik Larsson's quick release to Agathe read Matt O'Riley's incisive pass to Kuhn. The top-drawer composed finishes are identical. Kuhn's second is fantastic too as he is the beneficiary of another laser-like pass from Reo Haate which slices open the defence but the chop and quick change from right to left before despatching a high finish is superb.

The piece de resistance from Kuhn came in the form of the outside of the foot pass that Kyogo despatched with the minimum of fuss yet the chance carried maximum degrees of difficulty. It's Kuhn's split-second thought process here that makes all the difference. The spatial awareness, the game intelligence and the vision to pick out the world-class pass and to play it at such speed for Kyogo to latch onto was what was exactly what was missing from Celtic's forward play for large chunks of last season. It is a thing of beauty.

With that first-half cameo, Kuhn was staking his claim to be a regular starter in Rodgers' side moving forward as well as being the long-term answer to the wing problems that have plagued the team. At this rate, Kuhn could well turn out to be the surprise package for Celtic this season. He certainly served notice to Rodgers and the clubs' supporters that he is still around.

Anyone who can list both Ajax and Bayern Munich on their footballing CVs definitely has talent. He also clearly listens to the words of his manager as he previously stated when asked about playing under Rodgers: "I think the first talks I had with him were really good. He can help a lot. Also when there was a lot of pressure I think he showed that he was the role model to stay calm and believe in what we were doing." The Irishman may well have worked his managerial magic on Kuhn. It's what Rodgers does.

Consistency will be the key for the winger this season both domestically and in Europe. Scottish opposition as well as European teams will pack their defences and not afford him so much space in matches. However, the early signs against Manchester City were positive and encouraging, to say the least. A fully-fit Kuhn firing on all cylinders will see Rodgers' Celtic blessed with a player who possesses an electric turn of pace as well as the creative ability to assist. That is an amazing asset for the champions to have at their disposal. Kuhn has set his bar high. Alarmingly high.

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It was the extraction of Kuhn's wisdom teeth that hampered his start to his Celtic career. Watching Celtic toil in the wide areas last season was akin to pulling teeth at times. If Kuhn can replicate anything like his form against Manchester City when the ball starts bouncing for real in the Scottish Premiership next Sunday at Parkhead against Kilmarnock then the Celtic supporters could be in for a treat this season.

“Celtic is a massive club but it’s small as a family inside it and he’ll find that the Celtic family is like no other." You get the feeling that forgotten wideman Kuhn just like the prodigal son returning is about to be welcomed back into Celtic's small first-team family with open arms. You don't need the wisdom of Solomon to realise that Kuhn's reversal of fortunes is largely down to the wisdom of Rodgers.

Can Kuhn become a mainstay in Rodgers' Celtic team this season? Why, that's a challenge for Kuhn to sink his teeth into if ever there was one.