When I throw out the name Danny Milosevic how many will you know who I’m on about without googling him?

Well, Danny was a ‘Celtic Player’. Although if you go by Brendan Rodgers philosophy he trained with Celtic or perhaps drank tea at Celtic Park once.

Signed in January 2004 in a last-minute deal, Danny was brought in from Leeds to cover Magnus Hedman going out on-loan and signed on a £1-per-week contract to beat the deadline and be registered for the second half of the season. However, after signing the deal and being announced by the club, both parties failed to agree on actual personal terms and headed back down south shortly after, having not seen the light of day.

At the time, he cited “personal problems” as the catalyst for his midnight flitting back to Leeds.

But here’s where the goalkeeper unwittingly helped make Celtic history. After heading back down south, Celtic and Martin O’Neill sent out an SOS to the goalkeeper who was still technically under contract and registered with the club after Rab Douglas seen red in the tunnel against Barcelona in a UEFA Cup win at Celtic Park.

Magnus Hedman was out on-loan, and O’Neill’s first team goalkeeper would not be able to play in the return leg. Desperate to have a goalkeeper with experience, O’Neill tried to bring Danny into play in the Camp Nou only for the player to rebuff the request.

If you know your history, you know what happened next.

A young bhoy, by the name of David Marshall, who came on for the second half against Barcelona at Celtic Park was tasked with trying to keep Ronaldinho and co out in Spain.

That night, Celtic fans witnessed one of the most heroic performances by a young goalkeeper they’re ever likely to see. Marshall popped up again and again as Barcelona’s unrelenting pressure failed to pay dividends for the Catalans.

The goalkeeper’s performance was a big reason why Celtic went on to knock Barcelona out of the UEFA cup that night in a memorable draw at the Camp Nou.

Alan Thompson’s single goal at Celtic Park was enough to make sure the bhoy’s headed through to the next round of the competition.

If Danny had answered the SOS, none of this would’ve happened and a star would not have been born.

David Marshall has gone on to have a very successful career down south after moving on from Celtic under Gordon Strachan.

 

 

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