Robert ‘Roy’ Aitken was born on the 24th of November, 1958 in Irvine, North Ayrshire. He grew up in Ardrossan and attended St. Andrews Academy in Saltcoats and signed for Celtic in 1975, having been part of Celtic Boys Club previously.
Nicknamed ‘The Bear’ by Celtic fans, due to his size and commanding presence, he made his debut at just 16 years old on the 10th of September, 1975. He quickly became a first team regular and was captain in 1977 just two years after joining.
He was capable of playing as a centre back or as a defensive midfielder and made an incredible 670 appearances for Celtic over a 15 year period with the club, the 3rd most appearances in the clubs history. He won 6 league titles, 5 Scottish Cups and 1 League Cup.
Roy Aitken earned 57 caps for Scotland and played for Scotland at two FIFA World Cups. He played at the 1986 and 1990 finals and was Scotland captain for the latter tournament. In total, he captained Scotland 27 times before his retirement.
Further Reading
Roy Aitken at the Scottish FA