Rumour Mill: Could Celtic go back for defender? | Brown slams Malta ace

Rivaldo Coetzee in action for South Africa. His new boss at Mamelodi Sundowns reckons Celtic will come back for the defender. Picture: Getty Images

Sundowns boss expecting Celtic to return for Coetzee

Mamelodi Sundowns boss Pitso Mosimane has said he expects Celtic to return for Rivaldo Coetzee, after the champions pulled out of an £800k deal to sign the 20-year-old.

Coetzee, then at Ajax Cape Town, failed a medical ahead of a proposed move to Glasgow, but ended up signing for Sundowns later that week, and although injured is expected to be back playing by December.

Mosimane added: “I think when Brendan Rodgers sees the medical report again, he will be willing to have another look at Coetzee. He does not have to go through an operation which would rule him out for nine months like everybody said.” (Scottish Sun)

Brown fumes at Malta defender

Scotland skipper Scott Brown has accused Malta’s Steve Borg of spitting on him during the World Cup qualifier at Hampden last night. The raging Celtic midfielder said: “He did spit on me, he is a horrible b*****d.”

Brown didn’t retaliate, which could have earned him a booking and a suspension, and added: “He put his hand up to apologise but I managed to keep my head. The main thing was getting the three points.” (The Scotsman)

Hibs welcome back key duo

Hibernian are set to welcome back key duo Martin Boyle and Danny Swanson for the trip to Perth to face St Johnstone.

Boyle is back in training after missing the last three matches with ankle damage sustained in training after the 5-0 Betfred Cup win over Ayr United four weeks ago while a bug forced Swanson to miss the 1-1 draw with Dundee.

But the pair could feature this weekend as Hibs look to get back to winning ways. (Evening News)

Callachan vows to make step up

Ross Callachan insists he isn’t fazed stepping up from League One to the Scottish Premiership and is ready to thrive in a Hearts shirt - and he could make his debut against Aberdeen on Saturday after arriving from Raith Rovers.

Callachan, 24, said: “I always wanted to challenge myself in the Premiership and I’ve got the chance to do it at Hearts. Short-term I want to get in the Hearts team and become a regular. Who knows what can happen if you’re doing well? “Long-term, if I’m playing every week, I’d always want to go down to England and play. It would be amazing to go down there and have a crack at it.” (Evening News)

Griffiths injury sparks PSG concerns

Leigh Griffiths has played down fears he could be set to miss Celtic’s match against PSG after a calf injury forced him off against Malta.

Griffiths said: “I got a wee kick on my calf but it shouldn’t be anything too serious and I should be fine for [the game against Hamilton]. Whether the manager wants to rest me or not is a different story but I’ll speakl to the physio then speak to the gaffer. You obviously want to be available for Tuesday so if the gaffer wants me to rest it on Friday I will need to do that.” (Daily Record)

Celtic ‘can turn Roberts into England star’

Former Celtic midfielder Alan Thompson has played down claims that returning to Celtic shows a lack of ambition by Patrick Roberts - insisting the Hoops can turn Roberts into an England star like Fraser Forster.

Thompson told the Daily Record: “Celtic was the making of [Forster]. If he adn’t gone up there and played in the Champions League I’m not sure he’d have been in the England set-up as quickly as he was.

“I can totally understand [Roberts] wanting to play in the Champions League, and enhance his reputation. How many teams is he going to play for in the Champions League if he doesn’t get the breakthrough at City? Probably none.” (Daily Record)

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Tommy Wright has insisted Chris Millar could still play for St Johnstone - despite telling the 34-year-old he could go

• Hibs Ladies have lost out on their chance to play at Easter Road - after an ‘admin error’ by Scottish Women’s Football

• Scotland Under-19s were beaten on penalties by Montenegro last night at the Under-19 International Tournament in Serbia, after a 2-2 draw

Rumour Mill: Could Celtic go back for defender? | Brown slams Malta ace | Duo return to boost Hibs