SCOTT Brown these days cuts a virtually unrecog-nisable figure from the one Tony Mowbray first clapped eyes on at Hibernian a decade ago.

For a start, the bright-red Mohican is long gone. The hair, or what is left it, is shaved tightly to his scalp, the transition perhaps emblematic of the way a hyperactive boy from Fife has evolved into the captain of Celtic and Scotland.

"On the day I arrived at Hibs, Scott Brown had a red streak in his hair," Mowbray recalls. "Anybody who saw that almost Mohican-style haircut would have had concerns and thought, 'there's something wrong with this kid!'.

"But as I found out through working with him, he is somebody you'd want on your side yet. I thought the best word to describe him was "warrior", although at times his personality was that of a vulnerable young guy looking for guidance.

"Scott had to work and concentrate every day on his technique, which he did with great hunger. I hope we ignited his passion for football with what we asked him to do."

At 29, Brown will soon alight at a crossroads in his formidable career. Talks are under way to extend his Celtic contract beyond the summer of 2016, but in these uncertain times for the Scottish game, the negotiations may not be straightforward. A report this week linked Crystal Palace with an attempt to test the water and there will be no shortage of alternative Barclays Premier League suitors in the event that Brown decides to throw those formidable energies of his into a new challenge rather than see out his days at Parkhead.

With Brown having already embarked on taking his badges, one way for Celtic persuade him to stay might involve allowing him to take on some kind of coaching role.

"It's great Scott has started his coaching badges and it will only help him as a footballer," added Mowbray, who followed Brown to Celtic, via West Bromwich Albion, but only lasted nine months. "Did I see it in him? I saw certain leadership qualities. I made him captain at Celtic and at the time it was controversial in some people's eyes. There were those who just couldn't see him as captain of Celtic. But I'd think they'd have to admit he hasn't done too badly in the job." Mowbray added: "I would never advise anybody to leave that club - it's an amazing club with great supporters and the history stands on its own. If Scott Brown plays for X number of years, many of them as captain, he'd be very proud of that.

"So it's down to him really. With total respect, would Scott Brown want to go and play for Crystal Palace? It would only be to test himself in a different league. At this moment to be playing and winning with Celtic, competing in Europe, he is not going to get that at Crystal Palace.

"Whether he has that desire and urge to test himself against different - and in some instances better - players, that's down to Scott. But he has all the qualities to succeed down there. He has the athleticism, drive, power, desire and quality. Now that he also has the maturity he could go and play for most teams in England, I'm sure."

After a typically robust yet composed outing in Scotland's taut 1-0 win against the Republic of Ireland on Friday night, Brown will have another chance to demonstrate his worth to the wider viewing public against England on Tuesday.

It seems somehow inconceivable that Gordon Strachan would rest him. "It is one of those games where he has to temper it," Mowbray said. "But I am sure everyone will see in that game, against some of the Premier League's top players, just how effective Scott can be."

For all his detractors at Parkhead, Mowbray has left a fair old footprint on this Scotland side. Beyond Brown, his influence has touched Steven Fletcher, Steven Whittaker, Graham Dorrans, James Morrison and Shaun Maloney. He is entitled to feel a warm glow at their achievements, particularly Fletcher, who lost his dad Kenny to cancer when he was 10, and, as a teenager, had to be carefully nurtured by Mowbray.

"I sit at home now watching Match Of The Day and I see players I have worked with scoring goals and I am pleased to have had a role in developing them," the Englishman added. "I keep in touch with every player I've worked with, although that is something most managers do. If you play a little part in sparking their love for football at 17 or 19 then that is good."

l Tony Mowbray is a member of the League Managers Association, of which the Old Course Hotel in St Andrews is a corporate partner