Former Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc admits he turned down Premier League duo Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City in favour of signing a new deal at the Scottish giants, speaking to Sport TVP.
The reason? It’s simple really. Boruc wanted to remain as Poland’s number one ahead of the 2006 World Cup.
And, when you consider that he had Manchester United’s Tomasz Kuszczak and the young Lukasz Fabianski for competition at the time – Poland have never been short of talented shot-stoppers – a change of scenery was not a risk Boruc was simply not willing to take.
“I had Manchester City, Arsenal and Spurs after me,” the three-time Scottish Premiership champion recalls, translated by the Scottish Sun. “I remember speaking to Arsene Wenger on the phone.”
Arsenal, at the time, had both Jens Lehmann and Manuel Almunia fighting for a starting spot. England international Paul Robinson, meanwhile, was Spurs’ number one back in 2006.
Artur Boruc turned down Arsenal and Spurs
“It was just before the World Cup. And I was desperate to play for Poland at the finals,” Boruc, who earned 65 caps for the Central European national, adds. “I couldn’t be sure I would be first choice goalkeeper at any of those clubs.
“So I signed a new contract with Celtic.”
When you consider that Boruc started all three of Poland’s games at the so-called ‘Festival of Football’, Boruc’s decision certainly appeared to have paid off, even if the Bialo Czerwoni did finish third in a group also containing Germany and Ecuador.
A two-time Scottish Premiership Team of the Year member, Boruc eventually moved to England a couple of years down the line. He spent two years at Southampton between 2012 and 2014 before travelling a few miles across the coast to Bournemouth.
Boruc, who also admits to turning down Italian giants AC Milan, hung up his gloves this summer at the grand old age of 42.
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