John Guidetti doesn’t have overly fond memories of his time at Celtic.
Guidetti spent one season on loan at Celtic Park in the 2014/15 season and scored 17 goals in all competitions.
He was one of several Swedish stars to play for the Hoops, but the club couldn’t convince him to stay on a permanent basis.
It seemed confusing at the time, but the forward had a simple reason.
John Guidetti left Celtic to protect international career
The only thing absent during the forward’s time in Glasgow was his lack of game time for Sweden.
His teammate Mikael Lustig was being picked by Sweden, however, Guidetti was left out in the cold.
This coincided with the goals drying up after he made a brilliant start with 11 goals in 12 games, but he believed that the stature of the Scottish Premiership was hindering his chances of playing for Sweden.
He told local media outlets in 2015: “I scored 11 goals immediately, but lost my place in the national team.
“I understood what happened – it felt like my goals for Celtic didn’t count in the same way as in other leagues.”
John Guidetti was frozen out by Ronny Deila
Once Guidetti had informed Celtic that he didn’t want to stay permanently, everything changed.
Ronny Deila decided that he didn’t want to give game time to a player that he wasn’t going to be on the books next season.
While it must have been frustrating to miss out on playing, the striker understood that other options would be preferred.
“He said he would have to focus on the players at the club who were staying there and I can understand that,” the former Hoops star admitted.
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