‘The fans were going to kill me’ - ex Celtic ace on ‘dangerous’ ground he ‘can’t step foot back in’

The Ali Sami Yen Stadium, La Bombonera and the Red Star Stadium are just a few of the grounds famous throughout world football for the hostile atmosphere that greets visiting players and supporters.

However, for one former Celtic star, the one stadium his least fond memories come from is slightly closer to home. Per an interview with The 26 podcast, as quoted by the Belfast Telegraph, Leigh Griffths has been speaking about Windsor Park in Belfast which he says he ‘probably can’t step foot back in.’

The striker, who now plays for Australian club Mandurah City, was talking about 2017’s UEFA Champions League second round qualifying tie against Linfield. The two legged clash is probably best remembered as the time the Scotland international was nearly struck by a bottle of Buckfast thrown from the crowd and went on to tie a scarf around the post of Northern Ireland’s national stadium.

First speaking about receiving a booking for attempting to hand the glass bottle to the referee, he said: “I’m like that, ‘mate, I could have just been killed by a Buckfast bottle thrown from the crowd and you want to book me?’ I thought nah. I literally ran back, put the ball at the corner flag and smash it in the corner. That was it.”

He continued: “I think Celtic had about 100 or 150 fans. They never took a lot over to Linfield because they obviously knew it was going to be dangerous. Obviously, fans came over and I said to one of the stewards, that guy is going to give me his scarf, can you give me his scarf please?

“So he runs over and gives me it... straight to the post, bosh! Type this in on YouTube, I’m not kidding you. They had to get the Army across the corner, the fans were going to kill me. I probably can’t step foot back in Windsor Park without getting a doing. Someone would do me in. Nuts.

“If I ever play for Scotland again, touch wood I do but I don’t think I will, if we ever played Northern Ireland and we played them at Windsor Park, I couldn’t go. There would be people waiting at the hotel, airport and outside the stadium for me. At the time I thought it was funny, Uefa ended up giving me a one-game ban as well. There was never any intention of being malicious, it was just a bit of banter.”