Scott Brown last night signed an extension to his contract with Celtic which ties the midfielder to the club until the summer of 2018.
The Celtic captain agreed the deal following his return to Lennoxtown after the international break, having also captained Scotland to a crucial Euro 2016 qualifying victory over the Republic of Ireland.
His influence has grown for both the national team and his club, where he has made nearly 300 appearances since joining from Hibernian for a fee of £4.4m, leading Celtic to announce their "delight" that Brown had signed a four-year extension.
The Scottish champions will resume league duty tomorrow with the visit of Dundee before a match at home to Red Bull Salzburg in the Europa League. "This is a place that I call home," said Brown, who moved to Parkhead in 2007.
"Being Celtic captain is a tremendous honour and it is a role which I cherish dearly. The team is in a great place just now and we're all right behind the manager and the backroom team as they build for the future. I will do all I can with the manager and all the players at the club to deliver the success which our supporters deserve."
His club have now learned to what extent they will be affected by the African Cup of Nations, with the results of the qualification process confirming that the Scottish champions will be without Wakaso Mubarak during the tournament, while Bilel Mohsni will not be available for Rangers. Dominique Malonga is also unlikely to be available for selection at club side Hibernian.
Mubarak - who is on loan at Celtic from Rubin Kazan - scored from 40 yards to help Ghana to qualify for the finals, which are to be held between January 17 and February 8. Mohsni's Tunisia side also qualified for the competition and Malonga is a member of the Congo squad and is expected to retain his place for the Cup of Nations.
The three players could be out of action for their respective club sides for up to four weeks, a spell which includes training camps.
Celtic will, however, still have Efe Ambrose available after Nigeria failed to qualify for the tournament. The Celtic defender was criticised by team-mate Solomon Kwambe for his performance in a decisive draw with South Africa, with Kwambe claiming that his defensive colleague deserved "a five out of 10" for his performance.
Kwambe has been censured for his remarks in response. "The unwritten rule of football is never to criticise a team-mate and Solomon has broken that," said manager Stephen Keshi.
Celtic's on-loan striker John Guidetti has also been told to up his game by his national team manager, Sweden's Erik Hamren. "He will get there eventually but he needs to show more to get back to the level he was at before his injuries," said Hamren.
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