CRAZY WORLD ARTUR BORUC; Clangers will happen as I'm not a machine.

Byline: MARK GUIDI

BEFORE last season Artur Boruc used to make mistakes as rarely as he gave interviews.

But in Gordon Strachan's final campaign as manager he made a number of costly errors as the Hoops surrendered their title.

The big Pole also occupied the front pages for negative reasons as he went through a messy divorce, was pictured on a boozy night out and made an alleged training ground attack on Aiden McGeady.

But Boruc has been a changed man in the new season.

With Tony Mowbray in charge and Stevie Woods as goalkeeping coach he is recapturing the form that made him a target for AC Milan and Bayern Munich two seasons ago.

The 29-year-old jokes that his recent revival is down to chucking cigarettes. But there's much more to it than that. He has clearly made a huge effort to change his lifestyle in a bid to avoid the incidents that caused him so much trouble last season.

Boruc said: "I feel my form is getting better but it's still not the best I can do.

"My desire is to become a better keeper. Last season I made mistakes. That is life. I'm not a machine.

"But I don't want to look back on the mistakes or even mention them.

"I don't want to remember everything that happened last term.

"My focus is on this campaign and I'd prefer to talk about that.

Passion "Do I have a new approach to my game? Well, I've given up cigarettes!

"My main aim is to win the league with Celtic. That's what I want to focus on.

"I know I attract lots of media attention for other stuff. In the beginning that was OK but now...

"I don't know why it happens or how long it will go on for. There seems to have been a lot of stuff in the past year and a half. The stories aren't always true and that has been disappointing.

"But you need to deal with that. It would be nice to be anonymous off the park but that's not going to happen.

"I'm at the stage where people want to know what I'm doing, what I'm interested in, if my s*** is blue or green.

"I can't change that and I won't change myself. I'm the same guy I was 10 years ago. I want to win and want to live."

Boruc is understood to be the highest paid player in Scotland on wages of around pounds 30,000 a week.

He negotiated that bumper deal in January last year and is under contract to Celtic until June 2011.

Talks are likely to take place at the turn of the year and Boruc will either be given new terms or sold at the end of the season if wages can't be agreed.

The Poland international said: "This is my fifth season with Celtic and it's still a great club to play for.

"I'm enjoying it and still have the passion. I want to win the league again for the club and our supporters.

"I'm happy at the moment and not thinking about changing clubs.

"I'm focused on Celtic and if they offered me a new contract I would think about it.

"Being a keeper is a good job to have but maybe also a stupid one.

Where else would you get paid for diving about for two or three hours a day!" Celtic will need Boruc to be at his best during a massive week for their season.

Mowbray's men face a crunch Europa League tie at home to Rapid Vienna on Thursday then travel to Ibrox for the first Old Firm game of the new campaign.

It's a huge test of nerve but the Hoops goalie is ready for the challenge.

He said: "We have big games to play and that's what I want.

"The Europa League is big for us. The only change is the music before the games. It's certainly not the Champions League theme tune.

"Have you heard the Europa music? It sounds like some guy has picked the tune up and played it, like in a disco!" Boruc is heading towards his peak as a keeper but can't see himself following in the footsteps of Dino Zoff, Peter Shilton, David Seaman and Jim Leighton by playing into his 40s.

He said: "Age makes no difference to your form.

"Iker Casillas was Real Madrid's first-team keeper at 19 while Edwin van der Sar is the top man at Manchester United and nearly 40.

"I won't play for as long as Edwin but it's nice when you can do things you love."

CAPTION(S):

Cool it: A cop calms Boruc down in last year's Old Firm Co-Op Cup Final On the bawl: Boruc blasts Caldwell Conned: Artur argues with ref Gonzalez after the Eduardo dive In the public eye: Boruc is big news in Poland and often makes the front pages but he boobed with a howler against Northern Ireland (left) last term Artur's smiles better: Boruc has changed his lifestyle after problems on and off the park last term and is reaping the reward with a return to top form