Sead Haksabanovic used to run round as a child pretending to be Ronaldinho within the Champions League. Now the Celtic star is savouring the chance of sampling the large time for actual as a part of the Parkhead Euro bid.
Haksabanovic may make a 3rd Group F look in opposition to RB Leipzig having featured from the bench within the opener in opposition to Actual Madrid and in addition making the beginning line-up on night time two for the draw with Shakhtar Donetsk in Poland.
A lot of Postecoglou’s younger weapons are sampling the rarefied ambiance of the elite competitors and he’s amongst that contemporary unit. Simply as he was as an enthusiastic teen, the Montenegro worldwide was again at a neighborhood park working round once more in the summertime as he educated alone ready patiently for a swap out of Russian membership Rubin Kazan.
Haksabanvic couldn’t consider again then he’d now be getting into in opposition to the continent’s largest weapons at that stage and mentioned: “No likelihood. It’s a dream to play within the Champions League.
“Once I was taking part in soccer as a child, I watched the Champions League and, once I was working round taking part in with my buddies, I'd be screaming about being within the Champions League. Who was I pretending to be again then? Ronaldinho, perhaps. It’s simply wonderful and my buddies are actually blissful for me as nicely. It’s the most important stage. It’s the place everybody desires to get to.”
Haksabanovic was nicely versed within the traditions of Celtic even earlier than he signed simply earlier than the shut of the switch window. Born in Sweden, the attacker is buddies with Henrik Larsson’s son Jordan and remembers the success loved by his dad and the likes of his countrymen Johan Mjallby and Mikael Lustig within the largest competitors.
Haksabanovic mentioned: “I regarded as much as these guys quite a bit. Henrik’s son is my good good friend. So I do know quite a bit about what he has accomplished right here. I've seen clips of it, so I'm simply going to do my greatest and see if I can obtain 10 p.c of what he did.”
He didn’t focus on the transfer to Glasgow with Larsson Jnr beforehand as he didn’t need the cat to come back out of the bag as regards the Postecoglou curiosity. However there was heat there when the information got here out and the paperwork was signed as he defined: “I didn’t as a result of I didn’t need anyone to know. However he messaged me when it was accomplished and mentioned: We're blissful for you, it’s an ideal membership, they'll deal with you, when you want something you'll be able to ask me.”
Haksabanovic’s hyperlinks to Parkhead simply preserve coming. In addition to the younger Larsson, he comes from the identical a part of Sweden as Freddie Ljungberg, who had a spell at Parkhead virtually a dozen years in the past through the first managerial reign of Neil Lennon.
He mentioned: “I'm from a small city, however there have been many gamers from there who've been massive in Sweden and in England. Freddie Ljungberg is from the identical metropolis as me. He's a little bit of a hero of mine.
“Once I was round 10 or 11 he educated me in my hometown. All people knew who he was, however he didn’t know me. Henrik educated me too. That they had a training lesson and he got here.”
Haksabanovic’s exhausting work has now paid off as he now beds into Parkhead for the home challenges and rubs shoulders with the elite of Europe. It's, after all, not the attacker’s first enterprise to the British Isles. Having shone for Halmstads in his homeland, he was snapped as a promising teenager up by West Ham United, however the transfer didn't work out as he had hoped with mortgage strikes to Malaga in Spain and Norrkoping earlier than a everlasting return to the nation of his delivery and onto Russia.
Haksabanovic, who received the final 10 minutes of the weekend win over Motherwell rather than Kyogo Furuhashi, mentioned: “Once I was younger, I went on trial to many golf equipment within the Premier League.
“However when my crew in Sweden requested me a few first-team contract, and I used to be nonetheless so younger, I assumed taking part in first crew within the highest league in Sweden as a substitute of going to a youth crew in England was higher for me. It [West Ham] was an enormous transfer, however I didn’t go there considering I'd play each sport as a result of I used to be nonetheless solely 18 and coming from Sweden.
“After Slaven Bilic received sacked I didn’t get a lot sport time. I performed each sport of prep-season beneath the brand new coach, however they have been eager for me to exit on mortgage. It didn’t prove so good for me at Malaga because the supervisor there didn’t need me to play.”
Now, although, he’s again wished with Postecoglou giving him an enormous alternative to provide and ship in Glasgow. Haksabanovic is determined to repay the religion and preserve offering for not simply the membership but additionally his family members along with his optimistic outlook on life.
He mentioned: “Yeah, 100 per cent. I like to play soccer, I like to earn a living for my household and to assist them. If I had one leg on which to play soccer I'd nonetheless do it.”
READ NEXT