Keane craves SPL title as Celtic pull off shock transfer

ROBBIE KEANE is on a mission to help Celtic wrest the SPL title from Rangers this season after making a surprise loan move from Tottenham Hotspur.

The Hoops pulled off arguably the biggest coup of transfer deadline day by securing the Republic of Ireland captain until the end of the season.

Lifelong Celtic fan Keane, 29, whose wages are believed to be 70,000 per week and funded by Celtic's major shareholder Dermot Desmond, said: "I'm here until the end of the season. That's as far as I've thought about anything. I'll enjoy these few months of playing football."

And that will involve winning as much silverware as possible.

Indeed, so significant is Keane's move, bookmakers immediately slashed the odds of Celtic overhauling Rangers' ten-point lead in the SPL.

Keane said: "I'm not a betting man, so I don't get involved in that. But, at the end of the day, I'm here to hopefully win trophies for Celtic and that is hopefully winning the league.

"I want to be part of that and I believe, with the squad of players that are here, there's no reason why we can't."

The former Leeds, Inter Milan and Liverpool star, who could make his debut tonight as Celtic travel to Kilmarnock in the SPL, is also looking forward to playing in an Old Firm derby. "The Rangers-Celtic game is obviously massive," he said. "I've been lucky enough to be at the game a couple of years ago. The atmosphere was absolutely unbelievable."

Keane's signing, Celtic boss Tony Mowbray's fourth of transfer deadline day, dwarfed those of Diomansy Kamara, Edson Braafheid and Paul Slane.

Last night also witnessed the ninth departure from the club since the turn of the year, with Scott McDonald joining Middlesbrough for an undisclosed fee.

Keane signed for Spurs in 2002, making almost 200 appearances and scoring 80 goals, before joining Liverpool for around 20 million in July 2008.

However, he went on to make only 15 appearances for the Anfield side and rejoined Spurs in February 2009 for 12m.