DERK BOERRIGTER lived up to his nickname of ‘Sicknote’ after joining Celtic from £3million from Ajax on July 30 2013.
The Dutch winger was 26 when Neil Lennon splashed the cash for the player who had earned the unwanted moniker after missing so many games for the Amsterdam giants.
It didn’t augur well when Boerrigter made his debut against Ross County at Parkhead four days after signing and limped off six minutes before the interval.
GROUNDS FOR CONCERN…Derk Boerrigter hits the deck before hirpling off in the first-half of his debut against Ross County in August 2013.
The 2-1 win over the Dingwall outfit was one of only eight starts in his 25 appearances for the Hoops. He scored one goal, in a 3-1 home victory over Aberdeen in November 2013.
His final outing came as a second-half substitute in the 1-0 home defeat to Maribor in August 2014 that cost the club the chance of figuring in the Champions League in Ronny Deila’s debut campaign.
Boerrigter didn’t figure in the first team for 20 months and didn’t even train with the top squad. He was paid off in April 2016 with 14 months of his contract to run.
Another lowlight was his two-game ban for “simulation” in a game against St Johnstone where Perth defender Dave Mackay was red-carded for his part in the incident in August 2014.
The colossal waste of money couldn’t get another club after leaving Celtic and decided to hang up his boots.
Boerrigter whined: “I hoped that I could still find an attractive club and carry on playing football.
“Some clubs did come in for me, but none of them were worth bothering about. They did not offer me a sporting challenge or tempt me financially.
BALANCING ACT…Derk Boerrigter in action on his debut against Ross County, just four days after Celtic had paid £3million to sign him from Ajax.
“People often think: ‘That Boerrigter is injury-prone.’ But I have never had a serious muscle injury or a torn hamstring.
“Whenever I got injured it was as a result of a kick. The last time I played, the first time I received a pass someone launched a two-footed assault on my ankles from behind.
“I thought if that was how it was going to be, I would stop playing.
“I prefer not to play football any more at that level.”
It’s just a pity he hadn’t made that statement around the time the Hoops hierarchy were about to sign a cheque for £3million.
* TOMORROW: Don’t miss the adventures of another former Celt in CQN’s EXCLUSIVE series.
