Jozo Simunovic names hilarious Celtic tackle as one of his career highlights

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Former Celtic defender Jozo Simunovic has been fondly recalling some of his highlights at the club in a new interview from Croatia.

Simunovic left the club almost 18 months ago after the expiration of his contract, which Celtic chose not to extend for a year.

He’s now back in his homeland looking to revitalise his career after a horrid time with injury and rehabilitation.

But he still speaks highly of his time at the Bhoys, telling a Croatian podcast, as translated by The Daily Record: “The game against Kilmarnock that we played a few days after the legend Billy McNeill passed away. I scored to make it 1-0 with No.5 on my back. I can never remember such noise and applause in the stadium.

“My second favourite moment was an Old Firm game at Ibrox when I blew up Kenny Miller with a tackle.

“It’s a very physical game in Scotland. If there is no blood, there is no foul! But that was good because it toughened me up compared to Croatian football. The emphasis in Scotland was on the tempo and when we played in Europe, it was strange for us.

“In the Old Firm games, there is no communication with teammates during the warm-up and at the beginning of the game because it is not worth it, you cannot hear anything from the noise and shouting. After 20 minutes, you can’t say another word because your throat hurts. I was reborn at Celtic and they will always stay in my heart.”

These moments that Simunovic remembers is exactly what Celtic fans will remember from him too. Mention the defender and the two most likely responses will be about the hilarious wiping out of Kenny Miller or the emotional goal in tribute to McNeill.

They will likely make him something of a cult hero with supporters for years. The fact he was a big part of such an enormous period of success won’t hurt either. He was a big part of the team in the Invincibles season, making 33 appearances in total.

I hope the big defender goes on to find his form in Croatia and proves he can still play regular football on a week to week basis.

In other news, Ange makes it clear what to expect from Ferencvaros vs Celtic on Thursday night.