KELVIN Wilson paid a glowing tribute to Daniel Majstorovic as the Swede faced up to the prospect of his Celtic career being over.

Wilson praised the 34-year-old's "positive" influence around Parkhead and backed him to continue playing for several more seasons, although it would seem unlikely that he will appear again for the SPL leaders, given that he is out of contract at the end of the campaign.

Majstorovic suffered a cruciate ligament injury during training with his international team-mates on Tuesday. He will need an operation after Zlatan Ibrahimovic collided with Anders Svensson, who caused the injury by falling on to Majstorovic.

And Wilson said he felt enormous sympathy for Majstorovic, who had helped maintain his morale as he recovered from an Achilles injury earlier in the season.

"I'm really gutted for Daniel on a personal level," said Wilson. "I know how much he was looking forward to going to the European Championships. Especially at his age, it was probably his last chance to play in a tournament like that."

Englishman Wilson said the big Swede's attitude and strong mentality had lifted the spirits of others in the dressing room.

"Dan is a really experienced guy," he added. "He has got an opinion about things. You listen to him and usually think 'yeah, that makes sense'.

"He is always a help and he helped lift my spirits when I was out. I had a good few chats with him and he is always positive, never negative. That's why I'm sure he will come back as the same old Dan.

"It's important to have experienced guys off the pitch as well. He is a massive character around the place too."

When Majstorovic hit a run of solid form towards the end of last year, manager Neil Lennon hinted that he may be offered a one-year contract extension.

That issue was never resolved although the need for him to stay subsequently reduced as Wilson, Charlie Mulgrew and Thomas Rogne nudged ahead of him in the pecking order.

But Wilson added: "I would like him to be here next season. Dan is a nice man and a good footballer as well."

Sympathy may exist for Majstorovic in the Celtic squad but their defence has managed well without him, with Mulgrew the best performer of the lot.

And Wilson was stunned to learn his team-mate's call-up for Scotland last night against Slovenia had been his first ever for his country.

"When I first came here I thought he was a Scottish international already," said the 26-year-old. "I would come into training during international breaks and wonder why Charlie was there. I personally think this is the start of great things for him – he has been outstanding."