John Guidetti: If I Stayed at Celtic I Wouldn’t Get a Game For Sweden

John Guidetti has opened up on his reason for rejecting the chance to stay at Celtic – and insists it comes down to his aspirations with Sweden.

The striker spent a season on loan with the Scottish champions, helping them to four-in-a-row and the League Cup.

But after scoring 11 goals in his first 12 games at the club, the striker went horribly off the boil and only managed to find the net four more times all season.

Celtic boss Ronny Deila spoke openly about wanting to keep Guidetti once his loan and contract with Manchester City expired.

Yet Guidetti held off on negotiations before seeing Celtic’s contract offer withdrawn towards the end of the season.

He’s now been linked with a move to Feyenoord and a number of Turkish clubs are believed to be interested in signing him on a free contract.

And Guidetti has revealed his thoughts on exiting Celtic and how playing in Scotland would have affected his international ambitions.

Speaking to TV station Fotbollskanalen in his homeland, he said:

When I had scored 11 goals in 10 games and joined the national team, I did not get the chance to play. Then I felt that if I stay in Celtic and keep scoring goals and still can’t get into the national team, that would not be good. So I felt that my goals were not counted in the same way as in another league. There are too few ”big games”. In the end I said that I will not stay in the club. After that I did not play. I got the chance to come in from the bench. The coach said that we can’t play you, and you keep scoring goals and we build up your value, and then you leave the club. I understand that. But it was hard not to play.

Those comments are surprising given Henrik Larsson’s success at Celtic and with the national team.

The Swedish hero spent seven seasons in Glasgow, scoring 242 goals to become a club legend.

And he produced a 37-goal return for Sweden in 106 international appearances – the majority of which came as a Hoops player.