Friday's Scottish gossip

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Celtic captain Scott Brown has expressed his delight at signing a new four-year contract with the Scottish champions. (Various)

But boss Ronny Deila could face a fight to keep on-loan striker John Guidetti, who has admitted to being flattered by interest from French side Marseille. "It is a beautiful city with an amazing stadium," the Swede said. (Daily Record)

Dundee United manager Jackie McNamara admits he is no fan of artificial surfaces and says he hopes no more clubs "follow" Hamilton and Kilmarnock in laying synthetic pitches, insisting the Scottish Premiership will "end up being like the League of Ireland" if they do. (Various)

And McNamara hopes a recent visit from former Tannadice players Andy Robertson and Ryan Gauld will help inspire his current crop of Dundee United stars. (Daily Record)

Lee McCulloch, Kenny Miller and Kris Boyd hold the key for Rangers, according to Barry Ferguson

Former Rangers manager Walter Smith reckons current Ibrox boss Ally McCoist is doing well despite working under the "worst circumstances" any manager of the club has ever operated. (Daily Record)

McCoist insists his side's Championship meeting with Hearts on Saturday is even bigger than the League Cup semi-final date with Celtic in the new year. (Daily Record)

Ex-Rangers captain Barry Ferguson believes Kenny Miller, Kris Boyd and Lee McCulloch will give McCoist's charges the edge against the Jambos at Tynecastle. (Daily Record)

Ibrox winger David Templeton insists he is ready for the boos he will get from Hearts fans on Saturday, having previously played for the Gorgie men. (Scottish Sun)

Former Hearts coach Peter Houston believes it will be a draw in Edinburgh, and reckons that result will suit both sides. (Daily Record)

Gary Naysmith says former club Hearts will have one hand on the Championship title if they see off Rangers on Saturday. (Daily Record)

Mark Burchill, who played for Hearts, expects a fiery encounter at Tynecastle. (Scottish Sun)

Ronny Deila partied with his Celtic players on the pitch after a recent win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie

Hibernian's Dominique Malonga, Celtic's Mubarak Wakaso and Bilel Mohsni of Rangers are all set to miss a month of the Scottish season after their respective countries qualified for the African Cup of Nations. (Various)

And Hibs boss Alan Stubbs hopes Malonga is still on a high when he faces Dumbarton this weekend. (Daily Record)

Striker Farid El Alagui could give Stubbs a major boost by returning earlier than expected from injury (Scottish Sun)

Dumbarton manager Ian Murray is targeting a Championship play-off berth this season. (Scotsman)

Celtic midfielder Stefan Johansen says the players love to see boss Ronny Deila celebrating big results, but he hopes to never see a repeat of the time Deila stripped off on the park to celebrate securing safety with Norwegian outfit Stromsgodset in 2009. (Daily Record)

Manchester City youth chief Patrick Vieira says watching defender Jason Denayer star on loan at Celtic makes him "really proud". (Scottish Sun)

Paul Hartley admits he cannot wait to sample the Celtic Park atmosphere again when the former Hoops midfielder takes his Dundee side to Glasgow on Saturday. (Various)

Scotland hero Shaun Maloney, 31, could be set for a big-money move to MLS outfit Chicago Fire. (Scottish Sun)

Hamilton left-back Stephen Hendrie revealed his cousin, former Bradford striker John Hendrie, has advised him to stay away from girls if he wants to make the most of his talent. (Daily Record)

Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has backed his players to show they have the squad to cope with the absences of several key men when they take on Partick Thistle this weekend. (Scottish Sun)

Charlie Flynn secured a gold medal for Scotland at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet admits he feared the worst when he saw Black Cats striker Steven Fletcher come off injured during Scotland's win over the Republic of Ireland on Friday night. (Daily Record)

Ted McMinn has told new Real Sociedad manager David Moyes to learn Spanish as soon as possible, having watched Jock Wallace struggle to communicate with his players after switching to Sevilla in 1987. (Daily Mail)

OTHER GOSSIP

Scottish Commonwealth Games gold medallist Charlie Flynn is dreaming of bringing huge fight nights back to Scotland after deciding to turn professional. (Scottish Sun)

Former world champion Pat Clinton believes Scott Harrison should hang up his gloves. (Scottish Sun)

Scotland prop Geoff Cross vows to blow Tonga away in Saturday's third autumn Test at Rugby Park. (Daily Record)

Glasgow head coach Gregor Townsend has backed his fringe players to keep the club's Pro12 title push on track against Scarlets on Friday night. (Daily Record)