Carl Starfelt reckons the influence of legendary Swedish defender Olof Mellberg is helping him succeed at Celtic.
The Hoops star has formed a solid defensive partnership with Cameron Carter-Vickers since arriving from Rubin Kazan 18 months ago. The 27-year-old has fought off competition to become a first pick for Ange Postecoglou’s Premiership champions. And Starfelt believes his performances all stem from working with Mellberg at the start of his career. He worked under the ex-Aston Villa and Juventus stopper when he broke through at Swedish side IF Brommapojkarna, better known as BP.
Mellberg led the club two straight promotions eight years ago – taking them into Sweden’s top flight – with Starfelt in the side. Mellberg won 117 caps for his country in a stellar career and is now back at BP as boss. Starfelt will never forget the impact Mellberg had on him. He said: “Olof was really important for my development and career. He was a great player but also really good as a coach. For a young centre-back, he was the perfect guy to learn from. He came into my career in a tough moment as the club had just gone down to the Swedish third division.
