Celtic’s Fran deal
FRASER WILSON
f.wilson@dailyrecord.co.uk was all that mattered to the Hoops faithful back then, the Norwegian only had one thing on his mind – adding a Scottish title to the four he had already gathered in his homeland.
But his first taste of the Old Firm frenzy soon awoke his senses to what this fixture meant to those in the stands.
Celtic’s 2-0 New Year victory over Rangers on that occasion went a long way to determining the destination of the championship. Which is why Steven Gerrard’s side will have a renewed sense of belief having taken the spoils at Parkhead last time out.
Brattbakk said: “Winning games is important towards winning a title.
“But most of all when you win the games against your toughest opponent, it gives you a bit more of a boost.
“When you look back 22 years you can always see that game as a decider.
“The games Rangers have played against Celtic this year can also be decisive towards the end of the season.
“I don’t know how much the players look at the Old Firm games as being more important but I know that win gave us a head start through the rest of the season.
“It’s going to be exciting. Celtic two points ahead but Rangers playing a game less – and a lot of points to play for.
“I’d heard all about the Old Firm games but it wasn’t until I played that game myself on January 2, 1998, I understood how big it is.
“I’ve said to my friends who are interested in football, ‘if you want to see one local derby go to Glasgow’.
“It’s crazy. Obviously, there have been some not so good stories as well regarding the fight between the two teams.
“But all in all, the fight on the pitch and the fight towards the league title, it’s amazing. I’m so glad I was able to be a part of it.
“I wasn’t obsessed with 10. I was unknowingly taken into this storm. I arrived in December and didn’t know anything about it.
“But we talked about it and it is even more obvious for the local lads, those who have a connection to the city.
“It is strange but we didn’t think of it as winning the title, we thought about it as stopping 10-in-a-row.
“Stopping 10 though didn’t feel the bigger prize for me — I was winning the league for Celtic for the first time. “On the receiving end of 10-in-a-row, that’s tough. It is the opposite now to my time. But it’s the same emotions. Gerrard’s right in many respects, it’s an obsession.” Brattbakk dismisses claims this could be the last chance either side has to make history. He added: “We stopped 10-in-a-row and said, ‘this is probably not going to happen again’. But now it is! “Scottish football needs two good teams fighting against each other, like Celtic and Rangers. “Obviously, I hope for Celtic to win 10-in-a-row.” Premier Sports will screen live and exclusive coverage of Rangers v Stranraer (on Friday) and Partick Thistle v Celtic (Saturday) in the Scottish Cup Fourth Round. See www. premiersports. com for details.
CELTIC have appointed Fran Alonso as their new women’s team head coach.
Alonso, 43, who was Ronald Koeman’s assistant at Everton, was most recently manager of Women’s Championship side Lewes FC.