Friday's Scottish gossip

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Scotland manager Gordon Strachan has shot down claims that the Republic of Ireland will feel at home at Celtic Park when they face his side in Euro 2016 qualifying on Friday, insisting the ground will be "Scotland Park" for the night. (Various)

Strachan has told his players to enjoy the excitement they have generated amongst football fans in the country, which has come about because of their stand-out performances in the last year. (Various)

Scotland captain Scott Brown has labelled the Republic match "as big a game as I've ever played in" and reckons the qualifier will be "like an Old Firm-type game". (Scottish Sun)

Former Scotland skipper Barry Ferguson is relishing watching Scotland these days, and is glued to the TV every time Gordon Strachan's side play. (Daily Record)

Republic boss Martin O'Neill admits the incident involving his assistant Roy Keane outside a hotel in Dublin was a distraction he could have done without in the build-up to the crucial Group D match. (Daily Record)

A huge crowd gathered outside Celtic Park when Robbie Keane signed for the club on loan in 2010

And despite complaints from the Irish FA over their ticket allocation for Friday, former Republic boss Steve Staunton believes there will be 20,000 Ireland fans inside Celtic Park. (Various)

Republic hitman Robbie Keane says the night he signed on loan with Celtic will live with him forever, and he hopes to enjoy another great night at the stadium on Friday (Various)

Henrik Larsson revealed the time was not right for him to become Celtic manager, as he lifted the lid on his talks with the club over becoming their boss in the summer. (Daily Record)

Celtic full-back Mikael Lustig offered Swedish countryman John Guidetti some friendly advice before his summer loan switch to the Scottish champions - "I told him to be yourself except don't talk as much.... he was putting pressure on himself saying how well he was going to be performing". (Various)

Hibernian manager Alan Stubbs insists the 'Buy Hibs' group's criticism of the club is irrelevant to him. (Scottish Sun)

Hearts manager Robbie Neilson is confident his Championship-leading side can handle the pressure after Rangers closed the gap on them at the top of the table. (Various)

Rangers winger David Templeton hopes to use the game against Alloa to finally cement his place in Ally McCoist's starting line-up. (Daily Record)

The Ibrox club have joined Aberdeen in chasing Inverness full-back Graeme Shinnie, who has reportedly snubbed a new contract at Caley. (Daily Express)

Rangers' David Templeton is out to nail down a starting slot with the club by starring against Alloa

Glasgow City goalkeeper Lee Alexander has revealed she broke her collarbone when FC Zurich scored their opener against her side on Wednesday night. The courageous shot-stopper played on with the injury but eventually went off, as her side claimed a famous 5-4 aggregate win in the Champions League match. (Scottish Sun)

City co-founder Laura Montgomery hopes to snap up some fresh faces to help Glasgow in their Champions League last eight tie. (Herald)

Former Manchester United boss David Moyes was confirmed as Real Sociedad manager on Thursday, and the Scot says he was advised to take the job by Sir Alex Ferguson. (Scottish Sun)

Scot Malky Mackay could be set to return to football as boss of Wigan after they sacked manager Uwe Rosler. (Scottish Sun)

OTHER GOSSIP

Scotland star Adam Ashe, who is in the team for the All Blacks Test on Saturday, decided to play rugby instead of football because the latter was not physical enough for him. (Daily Record)