Aaron Tshibola says that Kilmarnock is like a second home to him.
This season he was lured back to Rugby Park for his third spell – this time permanently.
When he first arrived in Ayrshire he was a 23-year-old on loan from Aston Villa with a £5 million price tag hanging over him.
But now he is more mature after a couple of underwhelming moves to Belgium and Portugal, and at the age of 26, he knows it’s time to knuckle-down and focus on his career.
The midfielder said: “Kilmarnock has always been a great place for me, not just on the pitch but off of it too.
“It’s a very warm place to be, I feel comfortable being in Kilmarnock.
“On the field I have had a lot of opportunities to go and express myself and show what I can do.
“Last time Steve Clarke was here who I’ve worked with before, he knew what I could do and that helped me blossom.
“The gaffer now was Steve’s assistant so he knows me and he knows what I can do.
“Ultimately as a player, it’s important you have support around you to back your ability.
“I feel like that’s been important for me, it’s worth more than going somewhere that doesn’t value you.”
He added: “Kilmarnock is a second home to me, the club has helped me build as a player and person.
“I am familiar with Scotland now, I have nothing but love for this club, the platform they have given to me is amazing.”
Next up for Tshibola and his Killie teammates is a Premiership trip to West Lothian as they get set to take on in-form Livingston this evening.
David Martindale’s men have won nine of their last 11 games – drawing the other two against last season’s champions Celtic.
And Tshibola knows it won’t be easy but their last game at the Tony Macaroni, which ended in a 3-1 Killie win with the DR Congo midfielder scoring, is giving them confidence heading into the game.
He said: “I remember that game, we did well and controlled the game.
“We didn’t give them much, so we know what we can do against them, and we know their strengths and weaknesses.
“We need to replicate what we did last time.
“It would be ideal if I can replicate that goal, I was on the scoresheet last time.
“That’s something I am trying to bring to my game, I want to score more goals.
“It would be nice if I could do it again and help us to a win.
“It will be a big test, we have played them twice this season with a win each.
“We know what they are capable of, we know that they’re on a great run of form, it’s going to be a tough test but it always is against them.
“We will make sure that we are up for it.”
He added: “They have done really well, you’ve got to give them credit.
“They are a hard-working team, full of energy and they make it difficult.
“But they can be beaten, we will give them respect, but we don’t fear anyone in this league.
“We need to believe in what we can do and go there and do the best we can.”
Meanwhile, Tshibola reckons playing without fans has had a massive influence on the season for every team.
He said: “I definitely think it has been a massive factor in games, without fans it’s different because they make the difference.
“They give the team that burst of life and energy you need when the game gets a bit flat, they can be the 12th man.
“I think teams are feeling the effects of not having fans at games.”
