I’ve no idea who he is, says former team-mate Rosenberg

HE may have been the talk of Scottish football over the last few days but Malmo skipper Markus Rosenberg insists he had never heard of Scott Allan — despite having been at West Brom with him.

Celtic secured the surprise signing of the Hibs midfielder last week and he could make his debut in the Champions League play- off with the Swedish champions.

Allan and experienced Malmo striker Rosenberg (below) were both at The Hawthorns for two seasons from 2012.

However, the ex-Werder Bremen player — who will miss out on the first leg through suspension — admitted he had absolutely no idea who his former Baggies teammate was because Allan was sent out on loan to Birmingham City, Portsmouth and MK Dons.

Asked about his views on his former team-mate, Rosenberg replied: ‘ No, I’ve not got a clue who he is. I have never heard of him.

‘Did he go on loan to Birmingham City? In that case, I might know who he is. But he was never there when I was there. He must have been always out on loan.’

At the weekend, Malmo manager Age Hareide also admitted he had no idea who Celtic’s new recruit was and, l ast night, he continued to add spice to tomorrow night’s match by insisting Mal mo’ s last opponents Red Bull Salzburg are better than Celtic.

‘ We have every respect for Celtic. But the truth is Salzburg are better and showed it in the Europa League last year, too,’ said the Norwegian.

‘ It i s based on my purely football-related assessment. It is not because we meet Celtic or that I’ll talk s*** about t hem. It wi l l be a completely diff erent experience than Salzburg.

‘The pressure comes more from the stands at Parkhead than on the pitch. It can be difficult to communicate with the players, so we need to be alert. But I think our team is set up well for this type of game.

‘I had a whole Sunday with Celtic. I saw four of their matches. It is probably my strength, to find out tactics against different opponents.

‘I have a good picture of them now.’

Hareide did, at least, have words of praise for Parkhead winger James Forrest — although he did compare him to a former Rangers legend.

‘ When I was watching the Kilmarnock v Celtic game last week, I was fascinated by the winger Forrest,’ he admitted.

‘ He l ooked l i ke a good old Scottish winger, with pace and flair. He reminds me of Willie Johnston.

‘He’s that type of player, with quick feet. He’s more of a winger than a midfielder — he’s a throwback. Scotland always produce players with flair, who are quick and technical.

‘I’ve followed Celtic from the early days, I’m that old. I remember Jimmy Johnstone and the team who won the European Cup.

‘I watched the Final against Inter Milan when I was young. Jimmy was a fantastic player and I remember the names — Bobby Murdoch, Bobby Lennox, Billy McNeill, t hen l ater Danny McGrain. All of them were top players of European standard back then. ‘For me, Scotland have always produced very good players. Scottish football fascinates me because I think there is a lot of potential in the players there.

‘Since Ronny Deila has come to Celtic, it has strengthened the Scandinavian relationship with Celtic. It started with Henrik Larsson and, from there, Celtic have had a lot of followers over here. ‘I’ve never had the chance to manage there. I’ ve only ever really looked at Scandinavia and I have t al ked with some English Championship clubs. ‘ But never Scotland. Aside f rom Rangers and Celtic, there i s only r eally Aberdeen and they had a Dane i n Ebbe Skovdahl. ‘I went to Brondby as manager when he left for Aberdeen.’ Hareide also admitted he is worried about a countryman tomorrow at Parkhead, after revealing he has been hugely impressed with midfielder Stefan Johansen. He said: ‘I know him well. He’s worked really hard at Celtic and he’s established himself both there and wi t h the Norway. He is so important for Celtic and the national team. He can go on to be a top player.’