Whenever you hear a story of the one that got away, nothing sums that up more than Andy Robertson for the Celtic fans.
Already at the club as a youth player, we had one of the world’s best left backs on our doorstep before we decided that he was too small and wasn’t going to make it. [Daily Record]
In fairness, hindsight is a wonderful thing but it also makes me wonder. If we got Andy Robertson so wrong, how many others did we let go and have made it in the game?
That could be a five page article in itself!
Robertson, to be fair to him, never gave up in his dream to become a professional football player.
After the disappointment of Celtic, he signed for Queens Park where he earned £18 per week as a part time footballer.
But he was quickly recognised as a great prospect and was picked up by Dundee United in 2013. [BBC]
After just one season he was picked up by Hull City in the EPL in 2014 [STV] and it wasn’t long before Liverpool took the plunge and spent £10m to take him to Anfield in 2017. [BBC]
But in a trophy laden career, Robertson has never forgotten his roots and in this superb interview, he still speaks passionately about the only real club in his life.
Speaking to Liverpool FC Robertson said, “I grew up a massive Celtic fan.
“Had the season ticket, used to go to every home game in particular and try to go to some away games and things like that.
“Celtic was my life. Went to school and then you come back and you go in your garden and you pretend to be Henrik Larsson for instance.
“I was lucky. The team I grew up with was a fantastic Celtic team with Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton, Stillain Petrov, all these players, Neil Lennon.
“So I had a really good team to watch. They were all my heroes. Celtic was it for me. I didn’t really watch much other football I was that focused on trying to watch Celtic and Celtic was in the Champions League.
“So that’s when I watched them play against English teams and stuff but I didn’t watch that much English football.
“I only watched really the Champions League when [English] teams played in it.
“If a Celtic game was on and say Liverpool were playing Man United, I’d watch Celtic against Motherwell or whoever it was.
“So it was always Celtic for me. I just didn’t really watch other football.”
If you watch the whole interview, Robertson is a rare example of a footballer not letting money or ego affect his personal life.
A very humble and likeable guy who, I hope, we see adorn the green and white Hoops at some point in his career.
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