Football: Blood was seeping from my head but I came back on and scored four ... that's why Brondby fans call me Braveheart; EX-CELT MORTEN WIEGHORST ON HIS REMARKABLE COMEBACK.

Byline: By MARK GUIDI

BRONDBY'S club shop is filled wall-to-wall with jerseys, scarves and photos and Morten Wieghorst is plastered all over them.

At the counter, the assistant packs a top bearing the former Celt's name into a bag for another satisfied customer. After an outstanding season in which Wieghorst helped his side win the title and collected a double Danish Player of the Year award, he is to his club what former teammate Henrik Larsson is to the Hoops.

When asked about the impact the Brondby idol has had since his arrival 20 months ago the assistant smiles and spreads his arms.

He said: 'We call him Braveheart. We wouldn't have won the league this season without him.'

After fighting back from the life-threatening Guillan-Barre Syndrome little more than three years ago, you might assume Morten was given the nickname as soon as he returned to his homeland to sign for Michael Laudrup's side in the summer of 2002.

But it followed some time after he went back to his homeland from Parkhead on a Bosman, harbouring hopes of regular top-team action and reviving his international career.

Wieghorst arrives bang on time in the stadium foyer after his morning training session and his handshake is as welcoming as ever.

Naturally, he asks about Scotland's winter weather and if Larsson, who Laudrup wanted to sign, has made an announcement on his future. We settle in an impressive upstairs lounge overlooking the pitch, the walls adorned with huge photos of Brondby legends such as Brian Laudrup and Peter Schmeichel.

At the other end of the room the manager is holding a press conference to parade a new signing.

So, what about this Braveheart tag? Wieghorst covers his face with his hands and smiles: 'It started when I played for Brondby in a game against FC Farum and had to come off when I took a knock to the head and had a cut face.

'The medical team bandaged me up and I came back on to score four in our 8-1 win.

'It was a mad story and someone on the club's official website called me Braveheart for returning to the pitch and scoring the goals.

'I don't mind it and I suppose it's nice it has a Scottish connection, although I would never claim to be as brave as William Wallace.

'It's not quite reached the stage where I have been asked to pose for pictures with the kilt on, waving a sword. Maybe that will come when Scotland come over here to play Denmark in a friendly in April.

'That's a game I'm looking forward to and I hope I'm in the squad so I can play against my old Celtic team-mates like Jackie McNamara, Rab Douglas and Jonathan Gould.'

All three were at the club when Wieghorst came close to losing his life.

He is comfortable talking about it and obviously happy there is no chance of a relapse. He said: 'I know it was reported my illness was down to a piece of chicken that hadn't been defrosted properly but that is not correct.

'I picked up an everyday virus that 90 per cent of the population get. It started off with pins and needles on my feet and I had a strange reaction to it in my nervous system and my immune system attacked my body. It resulted in me getting Guillain-Barre Syndrome.

'What happened to me is an incredible story. And I owe so much to my wife Anna for still being here to talk about it.

'She was adamant I was not going to die when others maybe thought I was fighting a losing battle. Every day she told me I was going to survive and be able to play football again.

'She was scared of course she was. And I was scared. I was also worried about what our kids Sebastian and Sofie would think when they came to visit me for the first time in the hospital. They were fine and Sebastian knew I wasn't well. Sofie was too young to understand. But kids are kids and they just got on with things.

'I'm just so happy I came through it and the amount of get well cards and letters from everyone helped me. The management and players from Celtic also visited regularly.

'During a period of a year or so three members of our squad were hit by life-threatening things. Darren Jackson had a brain operation and Alan Stubbs had cancer.

'Thankfully, we're all well again and the support of Alan and Darren was appreciated. It just shows nobody in life, no matter who you are or how healthy a lifestyle you lead, can take anything for granted.

'Also, the media publicised it positively and my family were pleased our request for privacy was respected during the early days.

'The Celtic fans gave me a great reception at Parkhead the day after I got out of hospital. It was a game against Aberdeen and I'll never forget the happy atmosphere. My fightback started that day and seeing Celtic Park just made me determined to play again in front of them.

'It wasn't the easiest of comebacks. I lost about three stone when I was in hospital and my weight dropped to about 10 stone when I came out.

'I lost a lot of my body muscle and it took time to get back in shape and build up my strength again. I worked hard in the gym and ended up fitter than I had ever been.

'The fact I'm playing again and leading a normal life is also down to the medical staff at the Southern General hospital. I still go back and visit the doctors, nurses and other members of staff there. I owe so much to all of them.

'They helped me to recover and made things comfortable for my family and visitors.

'They were also honest and kept me fully informed. No false promises were made and I was never given any guarantees about pulling through, never mind playing football again.

'I was on a ventilator for 11 days and it came as a real shock. That's when the seriousness of the illness hit home, not that I needed a reminder.

'I had prepared myself for not playing again and the most important thing to me was just to be able to be healthy enough to play with kids and be a good father to them. For a long time I would just have been happy to be allowed to live an ordinary life. I wasn't in a position to bargain.

'But I don't want to forget a single thing that happened to me. I'm not saying I'm happy with what I had to go through but it did make me a better person and made me realise exactly what I had in life. It opened my eyes and I have used the whole experience in a positive way.

'If ever I come across a problem now I always think it isn't that bad and things could be worse. I don't dwell on negatives any more.'

Mind you, these days there's little for Wieghorst to feel down about. His career is going well and he is set to play for his country in the European Championships this summer.

He said: 'I couldn't have wished for a better situation to be in. To join Brondby and help them win the league and then win a place back in the Danish national squad has been a nice surprise.

'We play a 4-3-3 system and I'm usually in the centre of the midfield. I enjoyed last season and it felt special to win the double Danish Player of the Year award.

'The first one was the players' vote for the Danish superleague. I was proud to win that and it came as a real shock when I won the award for every Danish player in professional football.

'That allows players to vote for Danish players playing overseas. Jesper Gronkjaer of Chelsea and Everton's Thomas Gravesen were in the running but I picked up more votes than them.

'The awards bash was live on telly and I was really nervous my acceptance speech was crap.

'I wore the kilt to remind me of my time in Scotland and the things I had been through and the people who had been so kind to me and my family. It wasn't a Celtic tartan but it has bits of green through it. The Danish media interviewed me and I was touched I filled up a bit.'

Wieghorst misses Glasgow and tries to visit former team-mates and others such as Rangers skipper and his old next-door neighbour Craig Moore, as often as he can.

Such is the Dane's bond with his adopted country he almost turned his back on a move back to Copenhagen to continue life in Scotland.

And while he might have moved away, his Glaswegian accent remains.

He said: 'Aye, we've retained a lot of friends in Scotland and go over to visit as often as we can. 'It's more difficult for me because of the football schedule but Anna and the kids go over more than me.

'I've been a couple of times and we still keep in touch with Craig Moore and his family.

'I also visit the doctors and other staff at the Southern General Hospital to let them know I'm still alive and kicking. They saved my life and I will never forget them. I feel a bit strange when I go back and some memories return. But I don't get depressed about it I'm still here to have the memories and visit.

'We never really wanted to leave Scotland. From a family point of view we loved life there. We had great neighbours, good friends and the kids were really settled.'

Indeed, business interests in Scotland could yet prompt a return when he hangs up his boots.

Along with former Leeds and Manchester City star Alf Inge Haaland, he has bought a share in the Rosemount Golf Hotel in Blairgowrie.

Wieghorst, who's keen to learn more about the hotel business, said: 'I have a contract with Brondby until the summer of next year and will honour it. I don't know what I'll do the. I might carry on playing or see about coaching.

'Another option is to become more involved in the hotel business. I invested it in four years ago. It's in a lovely part of the world and doing well.'

But it was for football reasons that Wieghorst made the tough decision to return to Denmark.

He said: 'I could have stayed at Celtic. Martin O'Neill offered me a one-year contract and I was tempted to sign. But I was putting the family before my career and Anna told me I had to be a little bit more selfish.

'Michael told me he wanted to sign me. I like it here and have a lot of respect for him. He's a good coach and a good man.

'The fact he's the manager made up my mind after all, he is an icon. And Martin had a settled midfield loaded with top-class players. I didn't want to leave Celtic but didn't want to stay another year and only play six or seven games.

'I have good memories from my time there and feel proud to have played so many games in the season we won the title under Wim Jansen in 1998 to stop Rangers from doing 10 in a row. It was the most consistent season of my career.

'The tension was incredible everyone was living and breathing breaking the Celtic record.

'The day we won the league there was such a relief when Harald Brattbakk scored in the final few minutes against St Johnstone to make it 2-0 after Henrik gave us an early lead. It was a great day and will stay with me forever.

'It was a tough decision to leave but I eventually let my head rule my heart and I knew, from a professional point of view, it was best to kick start my career back in Denmark.

'But the pull of Glasgow is still there for us. The people are so friendly and the way everyone treated me during and after my illness was unbelievable.

'Because of the Old Firm rivalry I know you can find trouble in the West of Scotland but I never had a problem. If you keep your head down and concentrate on football you'll be fine and respected by both sides. Glasgow and the Scottish people were summed up for me when I was in hospital. It made it extra hard to leave.'

The Danish season starts next month and Wieghorst is determined to help his club retain the title and progress in the UEFA Cup, though Barcelona present a tough task in the next round.

The other incentive to perform consistently is a place in Morten Olsen's squad for Portugal.

Wieghorst said: 'I hope to be in the Denmark squad for the European Championships. It would be a dream to make it there.

'We have a tough group with Sweden, Italy and Bulgaria and it means I'll be up against some of my old team-mates such as Johan Mjallby and Stilian Petrov. Who knows, maybe even Henrik will come out of international retirement.

'Italy will be favourites to win the group and it will be a scrap for second but there is no reason why we can't do it.

'This will probably be my last chance of appearing in a major finals because I'm 33 this week although I'd love to go to Germany in 2006.

'I played in the World Cup finals in 1998 in France and I enjoyed it. But I was sent off in the game against South Africa after coming on as a sub and didn't deserve to be.

'I'm still convinced the ref pulled out the wrong colour of card and just stuck by it. The fact FIFA only banned me for one game instead of two shows they thought he made a mistake. And he was also sent home right after the game. I was angry but when I think about it now, well ...'

Wieghorst doesn't finish the sentence, just shrugs his shoulders. He doesn't dwell on negatives any more.

CAPTION(S):

Bloody hell: Morten's injury e; Well plaid: Player of year; Settled in: Morten, who starred along with Brian Laudrup and Marc Rieper for Denmark, loves it at Brondby but he and wife Anna still love Scotland thanks to the support he was given on the road to recovery