ERIK Sviatchenko has left Celtic to re-join his former club for the rest of this season.
The big defender, who was signed by Ronny Deila, made only two appearances this season and was injured in the Champions League qualifier in Norway in August.
He returned to full fitness towards the end of last year but never made it back into the side and the player revealed that Brendan Rodgers had told him to find a new club.
Southampton were monitoring the player’s situation having had great luck shopping in the east end of Glasgow previously but nothing concrete emerged and Erik is heading back to FC Midtjylland where he will get some much needed match time before deciding on his future in the summer.
The 26-year-old Danish internationalist signed for Celtic in January 2016 and was thrown in at the deep end in a League Cup semi-final against Ross County when he had to come on as a substitute after Efe Ambrose had been given an early red card.
He played for Celtic on 63 occasions and scored twice, once against Sevco Rangers in that 2-2 draw in the Scottish Cup. He won two league titles, two League Cups and the Scottish Cup.
Erik always made time for any Celtic supporter he met and he absolutely loved every minute of being a Celtic player.
The defender, who has been capped five times by Denmark, will be also be hoping to push his way back into the Danish national squad ahead of this summer’s World Cup tournament.
Celtic have announced the loan deal so it is now official, and we all wish big Eric well for the rest of the season.
Erik Sviatchenko has joined @fcmidtjylland on loan until the end of the season. Good luck, @eriksviat! https://t.co/TkgMShhDTl
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) January 16, 2018
A Celtic State of Mind presents its 30th instalment of insightful discussion around the culture of Celtic Football Club, the city of Glasgow, and fans of the reigning treble-winning Scottish champions.
Kevin Graham is joined by Scotty Alcroft to interview Scottish pro-independence politician, Tommy Sheridan, at The Penalty Spot in Glasgow.
The interview took place as part of A Celtic State of Mind’s first live event – Five-a-sides at The Penalty Spot – and, as such, there is some background noise (including mobile interference – apologies) from the audience.
The other voice you may hear throughout this episode is that of former Celtic striker, Frank McGarvey, who is a friend of Tommy’s, and who was also interviewed separately that day for a future show.
You are sure to enjoy Tommy’s eclectic input, as he discusses everything from Catalan independence to Coolio, with a constant undercurrent of that thing called Celtic.
Connect with A Celtic State of Mind @PaulDykes, @anorthernprose and @CQNMagazine and subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or through your podcast player.
