TALKING CELTIC
WHEN you leave Arsenal for Falkirk, as Stephen O’Donnell did in 2005, prior to spending the rest of your career in Ireland, the chances of bumping into one of the most talked-about players in Europe are slim.
However, O’Donnell did just that, last Wednesday, in the Leerkendal Stadium in Trondheim. Bendtner was on the opposite side of the Champions League divide to O’Donnell’s Dundalk, as Rosenborg snatched away the prize of a third-round qualifying encounter with Celtic.
The Irish midfielder and once-great Dane swapped memories of their time in Arsenal’s youth system, and O’Donnell is convinced that Bendtner still has something to offer, even if going to the far north of Norway to find a club was never on the horizon.
O’Donnell believes that a huge stage like Celtic Park will bring out the best in Bendtner tomorrow, and that the 29-yearold Rosenborg striker will be a threat to Brendan Rodgers’ side.
“Nicklas is still a big, big boy and a huge physical presence,” said O’Donnell of the 6ft 5in Dane. “He’s not changed much as a player. He is still a handful for defenders in the air and a good first touch on the ground.
“Nicklas will be a threat to Celtic, although I felt we handled him quite well last week because Rosenborg didn’t give good service in terms of crosses.
“He used to thrive playing on the biggest stages with Arsenal and Denmark and I’m sure that playing at a sellout Celtic Park in a Champions League tie will bring out the best in him.
When O’Donnell said goodbye to Arsene Wenger in 2005, to move to Scotland, the Arsenal manager was handing Bendtner a first-team debut at 17 and a year later, the teenage striker received the first of his 74 Denmark caps, aged 18.
The contrast was greater in 2010, when Bendtner played in the World Cup finals, while O’Donnell swapped Cork City for Galway United, one of the midfielder’s five clubs in his native country, with manager Stephen Kenny also taking O’Donnell to Shamrock Rovers and Dundalk where the pair have enjoyed European campaigns.
Bendtner, though, is neither loved by club or country. He was kicked out by Arsenal and Denmark and a lifestyle that saw him better known for car crashes than goals, means he’s now at Rosenborg.
JUVENTUS would not touch Bendtner after he was arrested for drinkdriving while on loan during 2012-13 and the Danish FA banned the striker for six months from the national team for that offence.
In August 2014, Bendtner signed a three-year deal with VfL Wolfsburg but the Bundesliga club ran out of patience and terminated his deal after two seasons. According to sporting director, Klaus Allofs, the Dane “was a menace to the club” because of so many lost nights and missed training sessions. Bendtner then had six months at Nottingham Forest before joining Rosenborg last March.
“He’s had a few clubs where things have not worked out for him,” said O’Donnell. “I’m sure Nicklas thought he’d be at Arsenal forever.
“I was two years above him at Arsenal,” said Stephen, now 31. “He was so highly-rated and Arsenal brought him in at 16 from Denmark. I came over from Ireland at the same age, so I looked out for him a bit because you know how homesickness can get to players.
“Nicklas and I spoke during the game in Trondheim and then after it. He says he is en-