YOUNG Motherwell midfielder Allan Campbell raised eyebrows in November when he insisted that Scott Brown should be worried about him, and not the other way around, ahead of the sides’ third meeting in six days.
The claim seemed misplaced when Celtic ran out 5-1 winners on the day, but Campbell’s bravado was more a sign of his assured confidence in his own ability than meant as a slight on Brown.
And as he gets ready to do combat with the Celtic captain once more at Fir Park this afternoon, he is determined to show that he belongs in such exalted company.
"He's played at the top for many years and you know when you're playing against better players you have to up your own game,” said Campbell. “I think everybody does that against the champions. You have to prove you're up to that standard.”
With the manner that Campbell or Brown go about their business, it would be fair to say that the midfield battleground will not be for the faint-hearted at Fir Park today.
"The physical side is part of the game, you need to get tackles in,” Campbell said. “I just try to play my own game. I like to get tackles in no matter who I'm playing against.
“I've been like that since I was young. That's what got me into the first team and I've always been told not to change that - get my tackles in and keep the ball and drive the team forward.
“I just like running about, getting involved, getting touches of the ball. I like to run about the way I did when I was a wee boy.”
As Campbell casts his mind back to the triple header against Celtic that ultimately derailed Motherwell for a spell until they got their season back on track after the winter break, he feels regret over each match for differing reasons.
"They were disappointing,” he said. “The cup final was disappointing and although the draw here was a decent result, I thought we could've won the game because we were close to doing so.
“Then Parkhead was another disappointing result for everyone. But we're looking forward to the game in good spirits and we're aiming to get something.
"We just have to treat it as a normal game, we've trained the same way we do every week. We just have to go out and prove to everybody what we're all about because it was a disappointing game last weekend [with the 2-0 defeat at Hamilton].”
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