Celtic Football Club

• Nickname:The bhoys, The hoops
• Founded:1888
• Manager:Neil Lennon

• Ground:Celtic Park
• Capacity:60832

Strachan hails veteran Telfer

07 Apr 2007 - 13:08:05

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Celtic manager Gordon Strachan has paid tribute to Paul Telfer's character after the veteran defender called time on his Parkhead career.

The 35-year-old full-back announced earlier in the week that he has cutting short his time with the reigning SPL champions two months ahead of schedule due to family reasons.

And Strachan, who managed Telfer at Coventry City and Southampton, has thanked the Edinburgh-born full-back for his commitment to the Celtic cause after making his debut in July 2005 and taking time to win over the fans.

"You've got to understand the man. He's a man who came along here and there were 60,000 people booing him," said Strachan.

"He's head and shoulders above a lot of players. His determination is incredible.

"Every one of the players thought he was a terrific full-back.

"Ask (Shunsuke) Nakamura about him. He'd be prepared to run 40 yards to give Naka two yards.

"He passed the ball when the team wanted him to pass it, not when the crowd wanted him to pass it.

"He wanted to leave last summer to be with his family but I persuaded him to stay until January.

"He wanted to leave in January but Willo (Mark Wilson) was injured, so he stayed again."