The disintegration of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s allowed its citizens to finally travel freely beyond its borders. Oleg Protasov has barely stopped moving since.

Whether this sense of wanderlust can be directly linked to being cooped up in Ukraine for the first 26 years of his life - foreign appearances with the national team aside - is a matter of conjecture but, after moving to Greece to sign with Olympiakos in 1990, the former centre-forward has shown a repeat willingness to dig out his passport and go where the work is.

His next appearance will be in Glasgow on Thursday night having agreed 11 days ago to become the new manager of Astra Giurgiu, the Romanian side who Celtic will face in the third game of the Europa League group stage.

It is the latest stop in what has been a peripatetic career. Protasov, a prolific striker in his day who appeared at both the 1986 and 1990 World Cup finals, turned 50 earlier this year and has packed in plenty since he and his fellow Soviets gained their freedom following the collapse of the Iron Curtain.

His initial transfer from Dinamo Kiev to Olympiakos has led to a lifelong affinity with Greece and its people but it wasn't his preferred destination. Protasov had his eye set on a move to Serie A but, as the eastern European market opened up, competition became fierce and Fiorentina instead elected to sign the Romanian Marius Lacatus.

Oleg Blokhin, the only player to have scored more goals for the Soviet Union than Protasov, was Olympiakos manager at that time and took advantage of his compatriot's initial disappointment to bring him to Greece. It would become a country that would shape his style and philosophy, first as a player and then as a manager.

Protasov saw out the majority of his playing days on the Mediterranean. He had four years with Olympiakos, winning the Greek Cup, before a row over money saw him move to Japan to sign for Gamba Osaka.

After a year, however, he realised he missed Greece more than he had imagined. After Olympiakos rejected the chance to take him back and Panathinaikos and AEK spurned his advances, he moved instead to Veria where he had the unique experience of the Olympiakos fans chanting his name during a game despite Protasov scoring twice against them. From there he signed for Proodeftiki before hanging up his boots as a Panelefsiniakos player.

Greece had become a significant part of his life. He now spoke the language and described the country as being like "a second home".

It was little surprise, then, that his first managerial role would also arise there. Olympiakos took him back, appointing him as manager in 2003, but it was not an entirely happy homecoming. He won a league title

- the club's seventh in succession - but his reputation was severely damaged by the 7-0 Champions League defeat doled out by Juventus on his watch. It is a result that still causes some Olympiakos fans to wince to this day. Protasov departed the following year.

Since then he has flitted around Europe taking on an array of disparate challenges, spending a few months at some, several years at others. He had a successful but brief stint with Steaua Bucharest, his first post in Romania, before spending the next three years at Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, his hometown club. He then moved to Russia with Kuban Krasnodar before the club's precarious financial position led to his departure in November 2008.

A return to Greece with Iraklis beckoned, where he was eventually sacked after five consecutive defeats, before embarking on another Russian adventure, this time with Rostov. From there he took charge of Astana in Kazakhstan for just six league matches, before enjoying a more successful period with Dinamo Minsk in Belarus where he won more than 60% of his matches before leaving last year.

Now he has returned to Romania to become Astra's third coach of 2014, charged with trying to resurrect the club's fortunes following a poor start to the season. Given the trigger-happy finger of Ioan Niculae, Astra's larger-than-life owner, he will likely not be given much time to turn things around.

It should go in his favour, then, that Protasov is viewed as a calm and cool individual, a manager capable of operating under pressure. He is a quiet, low-profile figure, not someone prone to grand gestures, and a manager who over the years has demonstrated a loyalty to those players who respond positively to his coaching methods.

He has also been described as a very thorough professional, the type who will spend the remainder of this week learning all he can about Celtic and their strengths and weaknesses.

Astra's precarious position in Group D, having lost their first two matches, may require them to adopt a positive approach at Parkhead, something that will likely suit Protasov's preference to have his teams playing on the front foot, attacking at pace.

It was an attitude that cost him in the infamous Olympiakos defeat to Juventus - an open 4-4-2 formation offered little protection against the Italians' regular, destructive thrusts - but that result has not dampened his enthusiasm for positive play. Protasov is still getting to know his players - they drew 1-1 in his opening league match in charge last weekend - and he can bank on discovering more about their mettle and capabilities at Celtic Park on Thursday night.