ELHAMED FORCED THROUGH HIS MOVE
CELTIC new boy Hatem Abd Elhamed has revealed how he refused to play in a Europa League clash for his former club so he could force through a move to Parkhead. The Israeli international has been a surprise hit since his £1.6million summer switch from Hapoel Be’er Sheva and was outstanding in the recent Old Firm win. Now he has revealed the torment he went through before his switch to Celtic because they didn’t want him cup-tied for their European campaign. Elhamed said: ‘When you tell your manager a couple of hours before an extremely important game that you are refusing to play, it’s a super dramatic thing. ‘I made an exceptionally courageous decision because I knew if I hadn’t done that, I probably wouldn’t have been able to make a transfer to Celtic. ‘We were in Albania to play Laci in a Europa League game and it was clear I was going to be starting. It was massively important to the club because we needed a good European run. ‘But on the morning of the game I got a phone call telling me if I played with Be’er Sheva, the transfer to Celtic was off because I then wouldn’t be able to play for them in Europe. ‘For three hours, I sat in the hotel lobby and drank endless cups of coffee. ‘I couldn’t make up my mind. I desperately wanted to play for Celtic but I didn’t want to let down all the Be’er Sheva fans who had fallen in love with me and who I had an excellent relationship with. They treated me like a king. ‘My head was gone and I couldn’t function because of the pressure of the decision. I knew I would be of no use to the team that night. ‘I was too nervous to talk to the manager. I wrote him a long message asking not to play. He took it very badly and that’s not surprising since he had been brilliant with me. ‘I then had to wait a further two weeks before the move was completed, so I was very scared it may fell through.’