Some people can take being at Celtic for granted.
Hoops fans don’t need to look beyond Brendan Rodgers as an example – the Parkhead boss has himself admitted as much.
The days of Celtic being able to convince their best players to stay are sadly over. Instead, the club’s player trading model embraces their position in the football food chain.
This hasn’t always been the case – on the occasion, Celtic players have spent all of their prime years at Parkhead.
This doesn’t mean that the temptation to try a more ‘prestigious’ league isn’t there – and in a unique set of circumstances, one former Hoops hero has revealed his regret at his post-Celtic decision.
‘I should have stopped after Celtic’ says former Hoops man
Celtic’s road to Seville was understandably not something that players wanted to miss out on – particularly as the run gathered pace.
But for Johan Mjallby, this came at a cost.
The Swedish ex-defender has spoken about his fitness struggles after the 2002-03 season, and his regret at continuing his career after leaving Glasgow for Spanish side Levante.
Speaking to the Herald, Mjallby discussed the knee injury which eventually caused his career to peter out.
He said: “The specialist was shocked when he saw that my knee was in such a bad state.
“He warned me that I could only play at the same level for probably another 12 months.”
After Seville, I had a really hard time moving. And if you slip below 80 per cent of your maximum then you are going to struggle at a club like Celtic.”
“I should have stopped after Celtic and said, ‘nah, my body can’t do this anymore.’ But I just couldn’t accept that. That was really stupid of me.”
Mjallby made just three appearances in La Liga for the Valencia-based side, making one further appearance for AIK in Sweden before retiring.
Johan Mjallby and Celtic’s Swedish connection
Celtic have a special relationship with Swedish players.
Henrik Larsson was the first in 1997, and set a pretty high bar. He is widely seen as Celtic’s greatest ever foreign player after 242 goals across seven seasons.
Mikael Lustig’s eight-and-a-half years brought an incredible amount of trophies, many of them coming under Rodgers.
Carl Starfelt, Daniel Majstorovic and John Guidetti have also made notable contributions. Another ex-Celt from Sweden, Gustaf Lagerbielke, will return to Celtic Park with Braga next week.
There is certainly plenty of inspiration for Benjamin Nygren to look towards, as his Hoops career gets underway.
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