SCOTT BROWN has revealed that a League Cup win with Hibs sparked his dreams of a move to Celtic.
The 31-year-old midfielder was part of John Collins’ Easter Road side that hammered Kilmarnock 5-1 to lift the silverware in March 2007 – the player’s final year at the club.
Brown, who will skipper the Hoops against Dundee at Dens Park this afternoon, will mark a decade with the Parkhead side in the summer following Gordon Strachan’s record £4.4million purchase.
The all-action Scotland international admitted: “I enjoyed every single moment of winning that Cup – and I think that was what made me want to move to Celtic.
“That little bit of success – you saw the fans on the streets on the open-top bus – then you come to Celtic and you win leagues, you win doubles, you put smiles on people’s faces and folk appreciate you playing for 10 years at the same club.
“But it’s a fantastic place to be and to play football.”
Brown, who scored the only goal of the game against Paul Hartley’s side on Tayside earlier in the season, added: “I think I’ve matured into playing a holding midfield role.
“When I came here under Gordon, I wanted to run about and tackle. In big Champions’ League games.
“I always played out on the right because I probably wasn’t trusted in the middle of the park.
“Now I’m more settled to playing the game in the middle, I understand the game a lot more.
“I think I can play another three, four, five years easily, as long as I look after myself, and stay injury free.
“Last season, I was injured and still trying to play through games just to get us over the winning line in the league.
“As soon as I got six or seven weeks off in the summer, I felt recharged and started enjoying football again.
“I think we’ve pushed on a lot this year. We’ve brought in a good couple of players, Moussa Dembele and Scotty Sinclair, they’re doing really well and they’ve pushed everyone on.
“We’ve got a new manager, Brendan Rodgers, in place and he’s brought a new philosophy about the way he wants to play.
“This time last year, Aberdeen were right beside us, they had the chance to go three points in front, and, luckily for us, they didn’t.
“This season, it shows our winning mentality and the way we’ve been playing. The fans are back at Celtic Park, it’s filled up week in, week out.”
