In an interview with the Daily Record Brown opened up on the falling out between him and former Hoops defender Mowbray midway through the 2009/10 campaign, resulting in the ex-Hibs boss suggesting the future Celtic captain might want to find a new club with the January window fast approaching.

And Brown admitted he could have joined Tottenham Hotspur around the same time, with Harry Redknapp seeking to lure the midfielder to White Hart Lane.

Brown said: “I didn’t want to leave [Celtic]. I enjoyed playing for Celtic and all my family were there. But then I was told to find myself a new club.

Scott Brown has revealed how close he came to exiting Celtic in 2010. Picture: SNS Group

“It hit me like a hammer when [Mowbray] told me to find a new club. I had to get back on the phone and tell people ‘I think I might be free to leave in January’.

• READ MORE - Scott Brown: Tony Mowbray - now that was a crisis

“Then all these offers started coming in and I’m thinking to myself, ‘Well, whatever happens happens’.”

Brown had an offer from Newcastle, who at the time were playing in the English Championship, but Spurs were also keen on securing his services.

He continued: “I had an offer from Newcastle. There had been also interest from Harry Redknapp at Spurs and I was waiting to find out if he was still wanting to do something. So I [was] sitting there thinking if I should go or not.”

But once it got out that Brown was on the verge of a stunning exit, the club circulated a statement denying that the midfielder was heading for the Parkhead exit.

A fortnight later, Brown had been handed the captain’s armband and hasn’t looked back since.

He finished: “Looking back, as absurd as it all was, [getting the captain’s armband] was the moment that changed my entire Celtic career. I suppose I’ve got to thank [Mowbray] for that.”

Scott Brown '˜nearly joined English Premier League side' after boss row