BY GRAHAM CLIFFORD
THOSE with Celtic jerseys bearing the name ‘Keane’ on the back can dig them out and dust them off.
The squad number of the Bhoys’ latest signing may be different to that of the current Ipswich Town manager but it won’t matter a jot for the delighted Celtic faithful.
In the middle of a truly awful season for the Hoops, the loan signing of Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane has lifted spirits at the beleaguered club and will buy under-fire manager Tony Mowbray more time as he attempts to get Celtic’s season back on track.
Once it was confirmed that Australian international Scott McDonald would be joining Middlesbrough on Monday evening, the former Liverpool striker’s switch to Glasgow was all but confirmed.
Harry Redknapp wasted no time in giving the move his blessing when he told reporters: “He needs to be playing and to go to Celtic is a dream come true for him. He is a Celtic man. It’s a good move. Robbie needs to play.
He’s too good a player not to be starting here regularly. He wants to play all the time. It’s been difficult to guarantee Robbie a starting place at the moment.
He’s not a happy man when he’s not playing regularly, but he loves his football; he’s a great trainer, a great man about the place.”
A lifelong Celtic supporter, Keane still has a number of good seasons left in him and while his namesake joined at the end of his career, the current Republic of Ireland captain is still regarded as one of the deadliest strikers on these isles.
When Keane signed on the dotted line at Celtic Park on Monday night, Celtic trailed SPL leaders Rangers by 10 points.
Mowbray will be hoping then that his glamour signing will find the back of the net with more regularity than the Bhoys’ misfiring front men have to date this season.
Keane could well make his home debut in next Wednesday’s clash against Hearts in front of an adoring Celtic Park crowd.
Rumours that Ireland’s record scoring striker would be moving to the SPL giants surfaced a number of weeks back but Monday’s developments surprised even the most optimistic of Celtic fans.
The news of the Dubliner’s loan move came on a busy day for Celtic, with Fulham striker Diomansy Kamara and Dutch left-back Edson Braafheid joining from Bayern Munich on loan moves until the end of the season.
The Scottish side will be Keane’s seventh club in a busy career and when he lines out for his new side it’ll be the third topflight league in the world in which he has plied his trade.
There were concerns that Keane’s high wage demands could be a problem for Celtic but millionaire Irish businessman Dermot Desmond — the club’s largest shareholder and a nonexecutive director — may have paved the way for the highprofile signing.
Keano rules again at Celtic Park it seems and the 29-year-old will link up with fellow Republic of Ireland international Aiden McGeady, which may well be music to the ears of his international manager.