Born in Wandsworth in 1968 and sounding every inch the London Geezer, Matt Elliott was a surprise choice as a Scotland internationalist in 1997.
A huge presence in the Leicester City defence he was the original no-nonsense defender, signed from Oxford United by Martin O’Neill and key to the success that they enjoyed together at Filbert Street
When O’Neill moved to Celtic in June 2000 there was speculation over which players he would sign from his old club, with the need to impose a strong defensive presence Elliott seemed a natural fit.
It took the new Celtic boss a couple of weeks into the season to secure John Robertson and Steve Walford, finally in November a club record fee of £6m secured Neil Lennon but there could have been more, more than Steve Guppy.
After winning the Treble in his debut season O’Neill wanted to strengthen, literally.
Like O’Neill, Elliott is a great story-teller, in the clip below he brilliantly explains how negotiations went over the move to Celtic that never quite came off.
Martin O’Neill’s hilarious Celtic negotiations with Matt Elliott??
FULL EPISODE OUT NOW
? – https://t.co/2eCVkyuABl
? – https://t.co/8lxw0nShcF
? – https://t.co/vffBZcqQ4m#LCFC #CelticFC pic.twitter.com/IRFb6hD7vL— UndrTheCosh (@UndrTheCosh) May 16, 2023
Failing to sign the Leicester stalwart, O’Neill switched his attention to France and a defender called Bobo Balde. Elliott, Balde and Johan Mjallby would have been a fearsome sight for any forwards!
