MARTIN O’NEILL introduced Bobo Balde to Celtic in July 2001 when the towering, powerfully-built centre-back joined from Toulouse.
The defender quickly became a cult hero with the Hoops support who put together a little ditty to terrify the opposition that went along the lines of “Bobo’s gonnae get ye.”
Balde made his debut in a 3-1 home win over Dunfermline on September 8 and went onto make a total of 232 appearances for the team.
The strapping and uncompromising Marseille-born star was voted Celtic’s Player of The Year in 2003 and in his acceptance speech, he said: “It means a lot to win this award. It’s good to know the fans are behind you and they are happy with what you do for them”.
HIGH AND MIGHTY…Bobo Balde heads clear from Rangers’ Ronald de Boer.
Balde played in 12 of the team’s 13 UEFA Cup games that season, but was sent off after picking up a second booking in extra-time of the 3-2 loss to Porto in the showpiece finale in Seville.
His fifth season, with Gordon Strachan in charge after taking over from O’Neill in the summer of 2005, saw the Hoops crash out of the Champions League at the first hurdle after losing 5-0 to Artmedia Bratislava in the opening tie. Balde was widely criticised for his performance and was dropped for the next game, a 4-4 draw with Motherwell at Fir Park.
He returned for the second leg of the Euro qualifier as the team won 4-0 to exit on a 5-4 aggregate.
Balde suffered a broken leg in a 2-2 with Dundee United on Boxing Day and was sidelined for several months. In October 2007, the player expressed a desire to quit Parkhead when he admitted: “I don’t want to be at a club where I am not wanted.”
Two months later, the pivot made his first start of the 2007/08 season in a 2-0 win at Dundee United on December 26, exactly a year after his previous appearance. His presence helped Strachan’s side to their first away clean sheet in almost 15 months.
THE LOWDOWN…Bobo Balde slides in to challenge Manchester United’s Christiano Ronaldo.
His Celtic career came to a premature conclusion at the beginning of the following campaign when it was announced the powerhouse back-four performer would be allowed to leave on a free transfer. Remarkably, Balde remained at the club until the summer of 2009. He saw out his contract without making solitary appearance in a competitive game.
During his time in Glasgow, Balde remained a popular figure with the supporters and won five league titles, three Scottish Cups and two League Cups.
Years after leaving the Hoops, Balde reflected: “Celtic was a great adventure for me. We reached the UEFA Cup Final, were league champions five times and won several Scottish and League Cups, There were a lot of great matches in the Champions League and I’m very happy with the experience I had at such a fantastic club and stadium.”
In October 2009, Balde joined French Ligue 1 club Valenciennes and 15 months later he moved to second-tier outfit Arles-Avignon.
Balde, who made 52 international appearances for Guinea, was appointed manager of his adopted nation’s Under-20 team in September 2019 and remained for two years before leaving the post at the age of 45.
* TOMORROW: Don’t miss the adventures of another former Celt in CQN’s EXCLUSIVE series.
