01-05-2025
Ex-Celtic star who's seventh on club's most-decorated list says beating relegation would be ‘greatest achievement'
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A FORMER Celtic star who won 18 trophies at Parkhead could complete his "greatest achievement" this weekend.
Nir Bitton may be seventh on the list of the club's most decorated players but his dream has been to keep Ashdod in Israel's top division since returning to his boyhood club in January.
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Nir Bitton is seventh on Celtic's most-decorated players list
Credit: Kenny Ramsay
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The Israeli left Parkhead in 2022 after nine years and 18 trophies
Credit: Kenny Ramsay
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The 33-year-old is now battling relegation with his boyhood team
Credit: Kenneth Ramsay
On Saturday, the 33-year-old will lead them in a season-defining game against relegation rivals Maccabi Petah Tikva.
Ashdod stood in second bottom place when Bitton returned to the club 12 years after leaving for Celtic.
The former Hoops midfielder, who has been holding the fort in central defence this season, has shored things up at the back with Ashdod extending their unbeaten league run to seven games with a 0-0 draw at Bnei Sakhnin last weekend.
Victory for the Port City team would see Ashdod move three points clear of Petah Tikvah ahead of the final round of fixtures with their 10-goal difference advantage almost certain to keep them up.
And that accomplishment would top winning eight Premiership titles, four Scottish Cups and six League Cups during his illustrious spell in Glasgow.
Bitton said on the day he rejoined: "If we manage to stay in the league with Ashdod, it will be the greatest achievement of my career."
He came through the ranks at Yud-Alef Stadium before moving to the Hoops in 2013 and regrets that he wasn't able to lift silverware with his hometown club.
But avoiding relegation, something Bitton has never personally experienced anywhere during his professional career, will spark joyous scenes in the city where his parents still live and he calls home.
Meanwhile, Celts have announced a bumper new kit deal with Adidas.
The existing deal, which was signed in 2021, was set to run out in the summer.
Next season will be Brendan Rodgers' LAST as Celtic manager says Robert Grieve
But the happy parties have now agreed a continuation of the sponsorship for beyond the next five years.
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