ALAN Stubbs might not be a Celtic player by the time the new Scottish Premier League Champions arrive at the Reebok in August.
The former Wanderers skipper, who picked up his first major honour when The Bhoys finally clinched the title on Saturday, is strongly tipped to be heading back to the Premiership after two seasons in Glasgow.
But future prospects haven't stopped him paying tribute to Jimmy Phillips, who hosts the August 4 game as his testimonial match.
"You couldn't picked anyone bigger or better than Celtic for a testimonial," Stubbs said.
"And there's no player who deserves it more!"
Stubbs, who describes Celtic's Premiership triumph as "the best thing that's happened to me in football", has been widely rumoured to be set for a return to English football.
He even admits himself that he will sit down in the close-season and consider his future.
"I've got a lot to think about in the summer," he confirmed, "but at this moment in time I want to enjoy it (the Championship success)."
It has been widely reported that Stubbs and his family have had difficulty settling in Glasgow since his £3.5 million transfer from Wanderers two years ago. But that hasn't stopped the kid from Kirkby becoming the self-styled 'social secretary' of a Celtic team which has generated an incredible team spirit to match arch-rivals Rangers in the play hard-work hard ethos.
"It has been different up here," he acknowledges. "Different football, different way of life and different pressures.
"The pressure's on you every week to do the business, whereas down the road it's not as intense.
"The first year wasn't the best for me but this year I've proved people wrong. I've always believed in my own ability and now I've got something to show for it.
"When I left Bolton, I said I was coming up here to win trophies and win the league. I've managed to do that in the second year, so it's been worth it. Celtic have gone through a gruelling 10 years but now we've done this for the fans.
"The support is the best in Britian by far, no doubt about that. That's why it's so nice to send them home happy.
"Obviously I had special times and good times at Bolton but this beats that by quite a bit.
"The Premier League (in England) is still special and hopefully one day I'll go back down there. But for now I'm enjoying it up here."
Stubbs has already spoken to Phillips about the prospects of a bumper crowd at the only pre-season game to be staged at the Reebok and, provided he is still wearing the green and white hoops, is looking forward to coming back to Bolton for the first time.
"He's guaranteed to sell all the tickets at this end," he said, confident of a huge Celtic following.
"I'm looking forward to it myself because I've never seen the new stadium but I've heard glowing reports that it's supposed to be one of the best in the league. It will be nice to go there and see some of good friends I made down there.
"There's no better recipient of a testimonial than Jimmy. He's done a great job for the club, coming through the good times and the bad. Sometimes he's taken the brunt of it, needlessly.
"It will be a great honour for him to run out for his testimonial game."
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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