The man who scored the clinching goal to deny
Grounded for weeks due to Covid-19, Harald Brattbakk has just returned to work as an airline pilot.
As Celtic taxi towards their first Premiership game of the season a g a i n s t Ha m i l t o n Ac c i e s this afternoon, the Norwegian hopes to see them flying high, all the way to the dizzying heights of 10-in-a-row.
The former Hoops striker might be living back in his native Norway, but his radar is fixed on the goings-on in Scottish football.
Having been through the turbulence of trying to stop Rangers from winning 10 in season 1997-98, Brattbakk knows the tension in this campaign will climb to a ridiculous altitude.
But he hopes the Old Firm rivalry will dominate the headlines for the right reasons over the next 10 months, and not crash-land.
And come May, Brattbakk plans to have a first-class ticket for Celtic Park to see Scott Brown lift the Premiership trophy, having achieved what the former striker helped prevent Rangers accomplishing 22 years ago.
Brattbakk told The Sunday Post: “It’s great to see Scottish football back again. It’s been a long time.
“I’m certain every Celtic player will be desperate to get out there in a competitive game and record a good result against Hamilton Accies.
“It’s the kick-off to what is going to be a strange season for different reasons.
“Obviously, the world has been
Being part of Wim Jansen’s team that season was an incredible experience and, in the end, a bit of a relief
unusual in the past five months because of Covid- 19. It came to a virtual standstill, and life was just not what we had been used to.
“Every walk of life felt it, and lots are still feeling it, in some shape or form.
“In my job as a pilot, I was off for a few months but now we are starting to get going again. It’s good to be back flying.
“For my old club, this season is so important, and there is an opportunity to create an amazing situation.
“I have exper ience of both scenarios. I played for Celtic when we stopped Rangers from doing 10 in 1998.
“And four years later, I was part of the Rosenborg team that clinched our 10th consecutive championship in Norway.
“I was actually there for the start of that process, left for a few years in the middle to play for Celtic and Copenhagen, and then came back again to round it off.
“It was a brilliant experience and a really special memory.
“Rosenborg achieved some very special things domestically and in Europe. But to win 10 took it up another notch.
“It adds that extra something special to your belt.
“I think it can be the same for Celtic, even though I fully understand they already have a powerful and proud history.
“From a personal point of view, being part of Wim Jansen’s team that season was an incredible experience.
“In the end, perhaps our achievement was more of a relief