Celtic legend and current midfielder Scott Brown has revealed why and how turned down a chance to join one of the Hoops fierce rivals.
The Bhoys organised an event which was aimed at paying tribute to Brown and during that, the skipper was asked to share some of his experiences down the years. One of the experiences that he shared pertained to rejecting their Old Firm rivals before leaving Hibernian.
The Bhoys skipper told at the event: “I go down to London, I meet Gordon, I meet Peter and we have a chat. I go to Dermot’s house, he has maids! I’m thinking this is good. The fee had been agreed to go to Rangers, Celtic or Middlesbrough at the time.
“I Spoke to Gordon, he wanted to build the team around me, Peter Lawwell was phenomenal. Then I get a text to go meet Rangers, so I met Rangers – in a car park! That’s why I signed for Celtic.”
One of the best in history
Brown has risen in stature since he joined Celtic in the summer of 2007 for a then-record fee of £4.4m. He was only 21 at that time and both Tottenham Hotspur and Everton were also linked with a move for the midfielder.
He had joined the Hoops after making 59 appearances for Hibs during his time there. He had managed to score six times for the club in that period, assisting twice.
Indeed, he has been at Parkhead for 12 years now. He has played 542 times for the club, scoring 42 times in total and racking up a tally of 59 assists as well. During this period, Brown has won many trophies for the club.
He has won the Scottish Premiership title on as many as nine occasions, laying his hands on the Scottish Cup crown five times as well.
At the age of 34, Brown is still going strong for the club. This season, the midfielder has played 26 times in all competitions under Neil Lennon. He has also scored twice so far.
TIF Tactics
Despite being 34, Brown hardly seems to be getting older with every passing day. He still has that fire about his playing style. He isn’t afraid of putting his body on the line for tackles or blocks.
In the Europa League this season, Brown has made as many as three tackles per game for the club. Not just that, he has also won 2.3 interceptions per game in the competition, playing four games so far.
In the 4-2-3-1 shape that Lennon appears to utilise on a regular basis, Brown has played as the deepest midfielder – like he has over the last 12 years or so. But things could have been so different if Brown had not turned down a move to arch-rivals Rangers. He could have gone onto be a Gers legend – like he has at Celtic Park.