And They Gave Us... Lubo Magic!

And they gave us...

Lubo Magic!



The Legend of L'ubomir Moravčík
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November 21, 1998. A little known Slovakian put on an absolute masterclass in football trickery and sheer ability as he carved his name into Celtic folklore for all time, with what was perhaps the greatest debut in the long history of the Glasgow derby. Scoring twice and inspiring his new club to a 5-1 hammering of their arch-rivals - the single biggest margin of victory for the Hoops in the famous derby since the halcyon days of Jock Stein. As the Celtic faithful made their way home that evening, they were singing the praises of a new hero.

The legend of Lubo Moravčík was born!

A technically gifted footballer, equally adept with either foot, blessed with a deft touch, outstanding awareness, a passing game that was second to none, tricks and flicks that would keep the Celtic faithful on the edge of their seats and an end product that would leave goalkeepers glued to the spot or grasping at thin air as the ball nestled in the net behind them. For lack of a better description, Lubo was a consummate footballing entertainer of the highest order, mesmerizing the crowd and defenders alike with his dazzling array of skill.

L'ubomir Moravčík was born in the city of Nitra in the former Czechoslovakia. It was clearly evident from early on that he possessed a natural gift for football and continued to work hard to hone his skills throughout his youth. Eventually making his debut for his hometown club in 1983 and made his international debut for Czechoslovakia in 1987. He would go on to score 30 goals in 119 appearances for Nitra before moving to France in 1990, where he joined St. Etienne.

Ask any fan of that club and it is clear that they hold him in a similar high esteem to the way Celtic fans do. Indeed Lubo was voted the Best Foreign Player in France for 1992 - considering that the likes of George Weah, Alan Boksic and Rudi Voeller were plying their trade in France at the time, this is no mean feat. Indeed Zinedine Zidane once described Lubo as the best attacking midfielder he had ever seen! In six seasons with the French outfit he made almost 200 appearances, scoring 31 goals and even a cursory glance at his portfolio of goals for that club shows that Lubo did not score tap ins.

Following his time with St.Etienne he joined Bastia and then moved to MSV Duisburg in Germany. This was not a particularly happy time for the Slovakian as he even contemplated retirement. All too often a peripheral figure, Moravčík just did not suit the style and system of football that the German outfit employed. It was at this low point that the veteran midfielder received the call that would reinvigorate his career.

Whilst Moravčík's career had progressed on the continent, the 1990's were a difficult and often frustrating time for Celtic supporters. The agony of almost going out of existence sat side by side with watching 'that other team' go from strength to strength meant that the pleasure of watching some terrific football from the likes of Van Hooijdonk, DiCanio and Cadete was often overshadowed. But as the decade drew towards its conclusion silverware was still proving frustratingly elusive, until Wim 'the Tim' Jansen's Bhoys were able to 'stop the 10' in 1998, courtesy of the likes of Boyd, O'Donnell, Lambert and a certain dreadlocked Swede.

When Jansen announced that he would not be carrying on beyond that season the search began in earnest for his successor. It is believed that his eventual successor was not the first choice of the Celtic board, but when Dr. Josef Venglos was named it was greeted by an ignorant chorus of 'Dr. Who?' by the Scottish media, unaware of the pedigree of the new Celtic boss, which included numerous triumphs with the Czechoslovakian national side and even closer to home with English side, Aston Villa.

Ridiculed by the Press: Dr Venglos
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These pundits and doubters were further skeptical of Dr. Jo's abilities, as the Bhoys won just 3 of their first 10 competitive matches with him at the helm. But what 'the Gent' most certainly had was an eye for talent. And what an eye it was, bring in the likes of Johan Mjallby, Mark Viduka and his fellow Slovakian, Moravčík. Yet the arrival of the wee man caused further derision about the manager, chiefly for shelling out £300 000 for a 33 year old player. The press sniggered that the new arrival was little more than a journeyman with a decent freekick, but would be too small and too old for the rough and tumble of the Scottish game, much less make a significant impact.

To say the least, Lubo arrived in Glasgow with much to prove.

Lubo made his debut for Celtic in a 6-1 demolition of Dundee in November 1998. In this match Lubo gave just a taste of the quality to come, with sublime touch and skill. Indeed, the much fabled understanding between the Slovakian midfielder and the Swedish talisman was born that day, when the midfield ace provided a inch perfect cross from the outside of his right foot for Larsson to nod home!

Better was to come and just two weeks later Moravčík forever secured his place in Celtic folklore by his exploits inspired the Hoops to the tune of a 5-1 humiliation of the city rivals. Barely 10 minutes in and a blind Larsson dummy left Moravčík free to hit a left foot shot into the net. Four minutes into the second half and Lubo was at it again, this time picked out by a Tommy Boyd cross, and placing a powerful header into the corner of the net.

One of the most astonishing things is how quick Moravčík and Larsson had already built such an understanding. It was clear, that the home fans had a new hero to hail and at the conclusion of that match the tannoy system cranked up U2's 'Sweetest Thing' as the fans departed. Oh, how very appropriate that was!

Quick feet, an eye for goal, sublime skill, superb flicks, stunning tricks, supreme close control, capable of hitting deadly freekicks and a seemingly telepathic understanding with those around him. He was both an entertainer and he an enthraller whose creative ability made him sort of player that punters were all too keen to hand over their hard-earned in order to watch play. Lubo had it all.

The Entertainer - Lubo Celebrates

By the time Lubo had joined the club there was already a gap at the top of the table that would prove ultimately too much to overcome for the Bhoys, but that did not stop Lubo from continuing to delight the Celtic support, swelling the number of admirers for his artistry.

The last Glasgow derby clash of the 1998/99 SPL season was marred by a dreadful refereeing performance by Hugh Dallas. The Hoops went down 3-0 and the league crown was awarded to the Ibr*x outfit, but it was a thrown coin that struck the now disgraced former referee boss that overshadowed the entire match and just a few weeks later, Dr Venglos announced it would be best if he stepped aside, to be replaced by the supposed dream team of Kenny Dalgleish and John Barnes.

Under the stewardship of Barnes the Hoops went on to have a dismal campaign and Lubo was not immune to the malaise that had spread throughout the club. Despite all of his quality there were days during this season when even Moravčík was found to be drifting at times, as the Bhoys struggles continued. Indeed, Barnes even tried to convert Moravčík to playing as a fullback as the rookie manager struggled to find a way to best utilize Lubo's talents.

After the fallout to the infamous Scottish Cup exit to Caley Thistle that season Barnes was shown the door and Dalgleish took the reigns til the season's conclusion. Despite Celtic winning the League Cup with a 2-0 win over Aberdeen in the Final - remarkably the first silverware Moravčík had picked up as a player - the season concluded on a dour note as the Hoops finished a whopping 20 points behind R*ngers in the title race.

When Martin O'Neill arrived Moravčík was on the cusp of his 35th birthday. The question was, could he still deliver and would he fit into the plans of the new boss? The answer on both counts was a resounding YES! O'Neill declared that he would do everything to bring success to the club and by offloading the troublesome Viduka in addition to acquiring the services of the likes of Chris Sutton and Neil Lennon, these were markers that the new man knew what he wanted to do and that the board were willing to back him.

In what would prove to be an absolute watershed season, Celtic claimed the domestic Treble, with Moravčík continuing to cut a swathe through opponents. Lubo was certainly instrumental in engineering the 6-2 win over R*ngers, where he set up a number of the goals, including the corner for Petrov, but more impressively doing all the hard work and turning the defence inside-out before laying the ball off for Lambert to fire home. To paraphrase the commentator Ian Crocker that day, 'it was the stuff that Celtic dreams were made of.'

Another Glasgow derby brace, this time at Ibr*x later that season really put the icing on the cake of what was an unforgettable season for all involved but especially for the remarkable Moravčík. The first came from a gently rolled ball by Larsson being met by a superb forward run by Lubo into the box before slotting home, while the second was just as impressive, as a long ball forward was met by a Maloney flick on into acres of space for Lubo to chase down. The Slovakian showed incredible composure to wrong foot the covering defence before firing past the onrushing 'keeper.
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O'Neill continued to use the veteran playmaker more sparingly in his final campaign in the Hoops. After all, Lubo was now 37, but he still had magic in the tank and the challenge of Champions League football was well within his scope even at this age, as he demonstrated with a masterclass performance in the 4-3 win over Juventus. His trickery kept the Bhoys in the hunt, turning the Juve defenders inside out and playing his part in 3 of the Hoops 4 goals that night, including 2 assists.

Another league title was to follow - the first back-to-back league titles since the early 1980's - as Lubo's time in the Hoops wound down. Lubo left at the end of that season, for a short stint in Japan before returning home to his native Slovakia.

Anyone who ever watched him play will carry that little slice of Lubo magic with them all their days. For many, it may be one of any number of goals he scored or created for the Hoops, but for me personally, it was just a moment. A moment, where in a match against Hearts he managed to trap the ball dead... with his backside. It was an astonishing piece of skill, one of countless magic moments that he provided to the thrall of the Celtic support & Scottish football audiences in general had to appreciate that they were watching something rather special when Lubo took to the field.

In all, Moravčík scored 35 goals in 129 appearances for the Hoops, winning 2 SPL titles, 2 League Cups and a Scottish Cup.

Moravčík will forever hold a special place in the hearts of all who saw him. Future generations be told the tales, will learn his name and all will say it with fond reverence.

On Tuesday, when the Celtic Legends take to the field, one of the biggest cheers to resonate around Paradise will be for the little magician.

The man simply known as 'Lubo'.

Player Profile

Born: 22 June 1965
Birthplace: Nitra, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia)
Signed: 27 Oct 1998
Position: Midfielder
Internationals: Czechoslovakia (1987-1993); Slovakia (1994-2000)
International Caps: 42 caps; 37 caps
International Goals: 7 goals; 6 goals

Honours

Scottish Premier League: 2000/01; 2001/02
Scottish Cup: 2000/01
Scottish League Cup: 1999/2000; 2000/01



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