Andy Robertson Will Never Play For Celtic, And The Way He Means It He Shouldn’t.

I know Andy Robertson is a die-hard Celtic fan. I appreciate that.

He’s a good guy too, from everything I’ve seen from him in the papers and whenever he’s interviewed. He’s a grounded guy in spite of his stardom and his quality as a footballer.

So I don’t want to seem like I’m on a downer with this guy in the writing of this piece, but in a sort of a way I obviously am.

Because although the idea of Andy Robertson playing for our club sounds like a good one in theory, in practice what he’s talking about is a non-starter.

He says he would like to finish his career here if he can’t finish it at Liverpool.

He said he dreams of giving his “best years” to Celtic … these are his best years.

So what’s he going to do? Leave Anfield?

He’s not going to do that, and he freely admits that he wants to end his career there.

Which to my mind means what he’s really talking about is a wee bit tacked on at the end, a wee sojourn up to Scotland to fulfil an ambition when he’s in thirties. Which let’s be honest, that’s not going to happen and nor should it.

Celtic isn’t a rest home for players who want to slow it down and go through the motions, or some final destination for players who want to check off a box in their career goals.

Robertson plays for a massive club and has everything someone could want.

I understand if Celtic is an itch he’d like to scratch but I suggest that it would be easy to do; he could run down his current deal and there is no question that we would take him on a free.

But he’s not going to do that of course, and nor should he.

We’re a serious football club, involved in the serious business of playing and winning football games.

If he wants to play for this club – genuinely play for it as opposed to some vague dream that he has sometimes when he’s checking the scores – he should know that we’d want a footballer in his prime, not a guy on the downslope who thinks this is an easy gig.

Which, I repeat, is what he says he sometimes dreams about.

But let’s deal in reality. Unless he comes here at the end of his career he’s not going to do this.

No harm to the guy, but I’m never interested in hearing “I’d love to finish my career in the Hoops …”

You look at the young, vibrant side we have right now and that’s an insult, frankly, and although I know that’s not what Andy Robertson intended, it’s not something we should even be thinking about far less rubbing our hands over.