Celtic hero John Hartson makes surprise Rangers revelation

It would not be a stretch to say that Celtic and the Rangers share the most intense rivalry in all of football. It is a 24 hour, 365 days thing if you are from Glasgow and there is no escaping it. Thus, it is only appropriate that the two giants have absolutely dominated Scottish football throughout its history.

Naturally, it is rare for players to play senior football for both clubs, although moves do happen more often at the youth levels. Of course, there have been some exceptions through history.

One player that it looks like Rangers wanted to sign, even after his glorious career at Celtic Park, is John Hartson, who was playing for West Bromwich Albion at the time. But thankfully, the Hoops hero thought better of it and did not make the move to Ibrox. Otherwise, it would have completely tarnished his Parkhead legacy.

As reported by Glasgow Live, Hartson told Go Radio:

"“For me personally, I had a chance to go to Rangers after Celtic.“Sir David Murray called me up and said ‘we would like to sign you now, the medical is gone and you have had your time at Celtic’“I was at West Brom. I don’t think I would have ever been accepted at Rangers because of my success at Celtic. The 110 goals I got for Celtic I felt I might as well go and chuck them down a river, because I would never be forgiven.“It’s a huge rivalry. I’m not knocking anybody, but for me it’s like all my family grew up as Swansea supporters. I just couldn’t sign for Cardiff.”"

Hartson makes surprise reveal about how Rangers wanted to sign him after his time at Celtic

It is safe to say that Hartson made the right decision by not going to Rangers because crossing the Glasgow divide is always a controversial decision, especially when you consider how much he had already achieved in the Hoops.

There was very little for Hartson to gain from that move but a lot of legacy to throw away and he made the right choice by not making the jump to Ibrox.

Today, Hartson is still fondly remembered for his contributions for Celtic and enjoys a career as a pundit.

While Hartson might have been a top player during his time at Celtic, his career did fizzle out by the end of it. His move to West Bromwich Albion was not a grand success and he would also spend a short time on loan at Norwich City. Ultimately, he was released by The Baggies and decided to retire.