Our resident Celtic legend on all the action from Parkhead

I DON’T think there is any doubt Scott Brown has proven himself as a bona fide Celtic captain these last few years.

He really did prove a lot of people wrong with an increased maturity on the pitch and I wasn’t overly surprised to hear Brendan Rodgers say he will remain integral to the Celtic team. He is the club captain and that is the way it should be.

But I still think it is interesting that over the last six weeks or so there has been any debate about Brown going back into the team at all. The very fact that this is a conversation that has been had in pubs and workplaces is a surprise in itself because only a couple of months ago it would have been unimaginable.

So it comes down to just how well the team have played in Brown’s absence. I have to say that I know from my own experience that you need to be watching a player in training, watching body language, work rate, energy, all of that, to get a genuine picture in your mind about where they are and how ready they are to play.

I always think that you have to factor that into your thinking when you talk about picking a team because if you’re the manager then you are seeing considerably more than everyone else.

But if it was me, I would be tempted to put Brown back into the team for the game against Rosenborg in Trondheim on Thursday night.

It is a game that I think Celtic really need to go and win and in that respect the experience of Brown for a game of this ilk could be invaluable. If the game against Rosenborg was at Celtic Park I don’t know that I would be so inclined to change things simply because of how well the team have played

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