LEIGH GRIFFITHS is a man who has taken his career into his own hands and pulled himself out of the cold to then be thrust into the Champions League spotlight.

This time last year the striker was potentially on his way out of the Parkhead door to return to Hibs on a loan move that would have surely made life more difficult for him to grab the attention of Hoops manager Ronny Deila.

Some say it would have been an easy decision to make for Griffiths. Instead, he listened, matured and most importantly worked hard to win over his club manager, who has heavily and justifiably put his faith in the 25-year-old as a result.

While he has been rewarding that loyalty ever since, perhaps none more so than last week when his two goals will be crucial when Celtic take to the field in Sweden tonight as they attempt to overcome Malmo to get into the Champions League.

It is an attitude that has equally impressed Gordon Strachan. The Scotland manager yesterday named him in his squad to face Georgia and Germany next month along with fellow forwards Steven Fletcher, Chris Martin and Steven Naismith.

Given the form of the Celtic man, and the fact Naismith and Fletcher are finding game time hard to come by at Everton and Sunderland respectively, it’s hard to look beyond Griffiths for a starting place in at least one of the games.

And Strachan explains how his attitude, as well as his goal-scoring form, has been a big contributing factor in his inclusion.

He said: “It wasn’t Celtic or Hibs or me who determined his future, but Leigh himself.

“I keep saying to players when they tell me the manager doesn’t like them or this thing and that: ‘Do me a favour. You decide where you want to go in your life, get on with it.’

“And that’s what he has done. He has decided. He is the man who has put himself in this position where he is picked for us and there are great expectations, as I’m sure there are a lot of people who would like to see him starting.

“There was a guy on the television the other day, one of the pundits, who said he couldn’t understand why they [Celtic] were actually playing him. They said keep him out of the team because he is their No.1 player.

“That’s where he has got to now, where people are discussing whether or not he should actually be left out so he’s ready for a huge game. He’s determined, he’s a gutsy wee fella.”

Griffiths is far from the only Celtic player who could find himself swapping green and white for dark blue in Tblisi.

Stuart Armstrong was called up to the national team squad for the first time since joining Celtic on the back of a blistering start to the Ladbrokes Premiership season that saw him net twice against Inverness.

The former Scotland Under-21 midfielder has yet to have his first full cap, but Strachan hinted that he could be unleashed against the Georgians next Friday night.

He said: “That’s probably why it has taken him a little longer to get back into the squad because it is really competitive in that area.

“He brings his own style, but I don’t want to give too much away because it’s up the Georgians to find out what he does, not me.”

The last time Scotland played in Tbilisi turned into a nightmare as they came within touching distance of qualification to Euro ’08, only to lose 2-0 on the night.

It highlighted how tricky a tie this could be, however, Strachan was focused on more recent reminders.

He said: "I don't remember it. The world's changed since 2007. We've had a banking crisis since then, all sorts of things have changed since then.

“I've got an iWatch now. If people had said you'd have one of those in 2007 they'd have laughed at you.

“If people think it's going to be a straightforward game, I'd say go on YouTube and watch Poland playing in Georgia, because although they won 4-0 they scored three in the last five minutes, then come back to me and say it's a formality.”