Former Celtic goalkeeper Alan Rough has hailed Scott Brown and believes the Bhoys surrounding him with younger players has helped him to continue to perform at a high level.
Celtic’s 4-1 win over Hamilton on Sunday was Brown’s 700th club appearance and the club captain is expected to go on for a few more years in Bhoys colours.
Brown has been at Celtic since 2017 and is likely to be one of the most decorated players in the club’s history by the time he decides to hang up his boots in the game.
Rough admits that a few years ago very few would have backed Brown to achieve the feat as doubts were creeping him about his game and his suitability at the top level.
He believes the 34-year-old has been helped by the last few Celtic managers and how they have managed to build the side around him by having younger players beside Brown in the team.
However, the former goalkeeper admits that playing 700 games at a level is a massive achievement for any player.
Rough said on PLZ Soccer: “If you go back four or five years, you’d have doubted whether he would get to this stage.
“A lot of people thought that even footballing wise he has lost a wee bit, but obviously managers coming in had a word with him about his lifestyle, his approach to the game and possibly what they wanted from him.
“Surrounding him with younger players has obviously benefited him as well and certainly no matter what club you are at, if you play that amount of games, it is phenomenal.”
Brown has won the Scottish top-flight title nine times along with other major honours.
