The Rangers midfielder has fond memories of visiting Parkhead with Dinamo Zagreb in 1998.
Ranger’s Niko Kranjcar in action with Burnley’s Scott Arfield
Rangers midfielder Niko Kranjcar is preparing for his first ever visit to Celtic Park as a player this weekend, as the two Old Firm sides face each other for the first time since the Ibrox outfit returned to the Scottish top flight.
But the Croatian star has told the Rangers site that it won’t be the very first time he’s visited the Bhoys stadium, having visited Parkhead as a supporter in the 1990s. Though it wasn’t a positive result for the 32-year-old, with Darren Jackson scoring in a side featuring Celtic favourites Henrik Larsson, Ton Boyd and Alan Stubbs, things turned out well for his club.
“In ’98 I went there as a supporter of Dinamo Zagreb to watch a Champions League game,” Kranjcar explained to Rangers.co.uk.
“Dinamo Zagreb lost 1-0 but we beat them at home 3-0 and that was the first time Dinamo Zagreb qualified for the Champions League and my dad was the manager.
Niko Kranjcar bench at QPR
“It was a proud moment for me as a kid then and back home in Zagreb I was the ball boy as well behind the goal.
“So yeah, I have great memories from the two-legged tie and I must say I enjoyed the away leg. It was a great atmosphere on that day, a Champions League night as you would imagine, so that’s my memories.”
Kranjcar returns to the famous stadium with an even stronger urge to emerge victorious on Saturday, with his own football career giving him the chance to sample the white intense atmosphere of Glasgow during the Old Firm derby.
Burnley’s Andre Gray in action with Rangers’ Niko Kranjcar
The former Croatia international would go on to break through at Dinamo, playing 119 games and scoring 22 goals for the capital city club.
A spell with Hajduk Split followed, and by the time Kranjcar moved to the Premier League with Portsmouth in 2006, he was a fully fledged international player.
Kranjcar went on to feature for Spurs in the Champions League, and certainly has a host of big game experience to draw on ahead of Rangers’ match against Celtic – but who knows if it is enough to prepare him for the undeniable weight of Saturday’s game?
Niko Kranjcar – Tottenham Hotspur warms up
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