Steve Guppy was a player who contributed to a successful Leicester City side under Martin O’Neill back in the late 1990s, and he would be reunited with his former boss when he signed for Celtic in a £700,000 deal back in the summer of 2001…
Guppy, who also played under the Irishman at Wycombe Wanderers, won a solitary England cap at the height of his career, was now 32 and well out of favour at the foxes, but Martin O’Neill still very much had faith in his ability, and fully believed that he could still contribute to his Celtic side.
Utilised in a wing-back role by Martin O’Neill
Guppy a tricky winger, who could also adapt to the wing back position, was renowned for his crossing ability, which some claimed was on a par with David Beckham, hence why Martin brought him north.
With Bobby Petta, Alan Thompson, and Didier Agathe occupying the wider areas, the Englishman would provide stiffer competition, but with his expert crossing ability, he would add an extra dimension to our wide area, and with his ability to provide the likes of Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton, and the recently acquired John Hartson with opportunities that they would thrive on.
Faced stiff competition for a place in that brilliant Celtic side
Unfortunately for Steve, he operated on the left hand side, which Alan Thompson had made his own, and in his advancing years, he was unable to bring the energy and enthusiasm that his fellow Englishman brought to the side.
He was decent squad player signing though, as he was given his fair share of games, as O’Neill preferred him to Bobby Petta. That led to him standing in for Alan Thompson from time to time, and appearing regularly from the bench as he contributed to a league title win in his debut season.
Guppy missed out on Seville through injury
Steve Guppy was a valuable and experienced member of a Celtic squad competing on all fronts, although he appeared sparingly in the 2002/2003 campaign and the iconic run to Seville, but a hernia injury suffered in April 2003 ruled him out of the final against Porto.
Steve would eventually rejoin Leicester City in 2004 after making 49 appearances, and failing to register a solitary goal, and despite not having the best of times, he still made a contribution to our title win in 2002.
Just an Ordinary Bhoy
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