Strachan urges Nakamura to stay

Gordon Strachan has urged Shunsuke Nakamura to remain at Celtic beyond the current campaign.

Nakamura has hinted he could quit the champions and return to his native Japan for the sake of his family when his contract expires at the end of the season.

But Strachan wants the midfielder to have a change of heart in the same way Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson did when he decided against initial plans to retire.

The Hoops boss said: "For everybody concerned, I would hope he would be here next year - but I will not put pressure on him.

"If he goes back for his family, I don't have a problem with that.

"Sometimes you have a plan. Like Alex Ferguson, you think: 'I will retire.' But then he thought: 'Nah, I don't think so, I enjoy doing this.'

"We all have ideas about what we are going to do but, when it comes to the crunch, if you enjoy something, just keep at it."