M | Player Pics | A-Z of Players
Personal
Name: Dane Ben Murray
aka: Dane Murray
Born: 26 June 2003
Birthplace: Airdrie, Lanarkshire
Signed: 1 June 2019 (professional contract from youth academy ranks)
Left: –
Loan out: 9 Aug 2024 – 31 May 2025 (to Queen’s Park)
Position: Defender, Centre-back
Debut (friendly): Celtic 0-0 Bristol City, Friendly, 14 Jul 2021
Debut (competitive): Celtic 1-1 FC Midtjylland, European Cup, 20 July 2021
Squad No.: 47
Internationals: [….]
International Caps: [TBC at end of career]
International Goals: [TBC at end of career]
Biogs
Dane Murray was another hotly tipped youngster from the Celtic youth stable having made his way through the ranks. Whilst many others had bailed out in the past season due to the then drab situation at Celtic, he remained.
A big lanky guy at 6ft4″, he had the right physique for the role, coming in a time when the general defence at Celtic was lacking a bit of height.
A surprise debut, he came on due to injuries and a depleted squad as an 18 year debutant, and got good praise in an admittedly drab pre-season no goals match v Bristol City.
“I think Dane was outstanding when he came on”
Callum McGregor
Dane Murray made his competitive debut ironically against Danish side FC Midtjylland in a 1-1 draw, coming in for Celtic when the team were down to ten men and gave an assured performance, with the manager calling out his performance with fellow young Celt Stephen Welsh as “outstanding“.
Yet he was to be left out of consideration for the remainder of the Postecoglou era. As the squad was bolstered with a number of expensive transfers in, it ended up pushing out young talent such as Dane Murray. As Celtic went on to regain the league title and then win the treble under Postecoglou, there was little that any young challengers could do. The pattern followed under Rodgers even when the first team squad was burdened with injured players.
Fellow debut plate Stephen Welsh was the one of the two to make a place for himself in the Celtic squad (albeit generally well back in the queue), but Dane Murray was to be long out of contention. Celtic gave him a confidence boost with a contract extension to 2026.
A knee injury heavily damaged his chances losing him playing & development time, but Celtic were moving on despite his best hopes: “The doctors tell me I shouldn’t have any more problems with the knee. I’ve come back in the best shape I have ever been in.”
Dane Murray joined Scottish Championship (second tier) side Queens Park on a season long-loan for 2024/25). Having impressed away on loan, he was called back early to Celtic. Taking in that there was major competition for places at a what was thought initially to be a formidable Celtic, it was quite a turnaround.
Season 2025/26
This was a make or break season for Dane Murray, and you have to hand it him for his contributions in a dramatic season that saw four managerial reigns which was not providing the stability for any young aspiring player. With the instability at the club and then the collapse in form, it didn’t help his chances. Carter Vickers being out injured for the bulk of the season did though provide him with opportunities but it was Scales and Trusty preferred as first choice centre halves.
On his return in preseason 2025/26, he was a highlight in a 2-0 win v Sporting Lisbon in an away friendly, winning positive feedback from across the board. The management rightly extended his contract, and on the same day that he signed on for this he scored his debut goal v Falkirk in the League Cup (4-1 win, Aug 2025).
However, he was to experience a nightmare against high-flying Hearts who dominated the league throughout much of the season. In a highly anticipated head-to-head, he was to score an own goal when under little pressure and then later conceded a penalty, a result that put Hearts 8 pts ahead. Only two days later Brendan Rodgers “departed” from Celtic under dark clouds, and the atmosphere around Celtic was very charged. To be clear, that even if Celtic had avoided defeat in that match v Hearts, in the longer term it would have made little difference, and Dane Murray’s calamities were not in any way a factor to the dismissal of the manager.
Trusty, after being previously overlooked by Rodgers, regained his role in the heart of the defence and a week later had a man of the match performance v TheRangers in the League Cup semi-final (Oct 2025). It nudged Dane Murray back in the queue, but he was not forgotten.
He came on sporadically during the season, with the coaching team having confidence in the player’s future. The arrival of Ben Arthur on loan was expected to limit opportunities for Dane Murray, but it had little impact.
In the new year, when Trusty was banned for three matches, Dane Murray was brought back in for the admittedly dead rubber match v Stuttgart in the UEFA Cup second leg KO stages after Celtic had lost the first leg 4-1 at home. Celtic won 1-0, but notably for himself Dane Murray against some tough opposition had a great game helping Celtic to a shock 1-0 victory (Feb 2026). It was Celtic’s first ever victory in Germany in the UEFA Competitions, and he had played his part and helped to begin to turn around his reputation amongst the support.
As a measure of progress, with Trusty out suspended, Murray was given a start v TheRangers (2-2, Mar 2026) in a key league title match when at the time it was thought that defeat for either side would have likely ending their chances of making up the gap to title leaders Hearts. He was at fault (partly) for the second conceded goal when he sclaffed a clearance but made up for it with a fine second half, although he was still needing further experience for his development. Celtic did draw the match 2-2 at the death coming from two down at half-time, so Murray could hold his head up high for his overall part in this match. Next thing you know in the following game (v Aberdeen) he was out of the match after suffering an injury in the warm up! So for every step forward he then had a step back!
Regardless, he was also given a cameo late appearance in the do-or-die league title decider v Hearts (3-1, May 2026), which at least demonstrated that going forward he was certainly in the plans for squad if they were to play him in such a tentpole match. As the match was still at finely poised at 2-1 at that moment of his substitution, with any consequence being decisive as Hearts needed only to draw to take the league title. Being brought on that the management had full confidence in him.and after his nightmare performance earlier in the season, it was a chance to help in part bury those ghosts. After such a tough season, he deserved to take pride in his part in all the Celtic team had achieved but incredibly winning the league & Scottish Cup against all the odds, overtaking Hearts for the league title with just 3 minutes of normal time left (plus 8mins injury time) to play in the season.
Season 2026/27
[….]
Quotes
“Youth players will always get the chance from me if they’re good enough. You know, the pathway is not meant to be easy. Just because you’re a youth player at Celtic, it doesn’t mean then you go and play for the first team. It means you’ve got to earn the right. Dane Murray is a player I really like. I’ve seen him play here early on in his career and then he had a horrendous injury that’s put him out for a long time. He’s come back, you can see the work he’s done. He’s 6’4″, he’s big, he’s got good pace, he can play. I wanted to stick him on the other night because the things I’ve been telling him in order to be a top player, because he’s a great big guy, he’s a nice big guy. You step on the pitch, you’ve got to be aggressive. And sometimes you don’t understand that until you experience it. So to stick him on for 15-20 minutes, to get bashed up a bit and make a mistake, that’s a part of your learning. Because you can play relaxed, or you can look relaxed, but you can’t play relaxed. But I think if he can really make that mindset step, then he could be a really good player for us.”
Rodgers (Feb 2025)
“Delighted. We set out to win these comps every year, so it’s a strong start. I don’t score much so I was more shocked than anything.”
Celtic defender Dane Murray on scoring his debut goal on same day he got a contract extension (4-1 win in League Cup v Falkirk Aug 2025)
“Big Dane, another one that deserves a shoutout because he has had difficult moments,” said Taylor. “If you don’t talk about the two major injuries he has had. The difficult moments since he has come back. He is still out there. I think in the last few weeks, he has shown a big personality and shown the real top talent that he is. Hopefully, he can kick on from there.”
Ex-Celt Greg Taylor on Dane Murray (Mar 2026)
“You just have to deal with it. Just come in here, stick to your normal routine, and don’t let it affect you too much.”
Dane Murray on coping with mistakes and being chucked in at the deep end this season. (Mar 2026)
–
Playing Career
[Table to indicate clubs played for, including dates, transfers and fees where known [e.g. soccerbase table]]
| APPEARANCES (subs) |
LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 2021-22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022-23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023-24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024-25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025-26 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 14 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2026-27 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| 2027-28 | |||||
| Goals | |||||
| Total | |||||
| Goals |
Honours with Celtic
(Honours are marked below in which the player has played in at least one of the matches in the campaign.)
Scottish League
- 2025-26, […]
Scottish Cup
- 2025-26, […]
Scottish League Cup
- […]
Pictures
Forums
Articles
Links
Articles
Dane Murray excited for more after experiencing first-team training
Jul 2021
By Tony Connelly, Celtic View Reporter
Celtic Academy graduate Dane Murray said signing a new contract with Celtic has been a dream come true and the young defender is hopeful of establishing himself in the senior squad after being called up to train with the first-team.
Murray recently signed a new contract with the club that will see him remain with Celtic until at least the summer of 2024. The 17-year-old defender was first scouted by Celtic as a six-year-old and has steadily worked his way up through the ranks of the Academy.
He signed his first professional contract in June 2019 before receiving a new contract in January last year.
The Hoops defender was delighted to secure his future with the club for the next three years and said having the chance to train with the first-team has left him hungry for more.
“It’s brilliant to sign a new deal,” said Murray in an exclusive interview with Celtic TV. “It’s what you dream of growing up. I’ve been in and about football my whole and it’s something you dream of.
“It’s been brilliant to train with the first-team. To come from the under-18s at the start of the season to this is amazing.
“Everything about your game comes on more when you train with the first-team. The standard and intensity are much higher. Everyone helps you along every step of the way and they’re constantly giving you information. They just want the best for you really.
‘It makes you want to be here training with them every single day so you can try and establish yourself.’
Murray admitted there was no shortage of inspiration around him as an aspiring defender and said he hoped to continue progressing all the way to the first-team.
“You’ve got Darren, Mic and the manager and they all just want the best for you. They’re always trying to help you and coach you because they want you to improve all the time.
“You also have Kris Ajer who came in at 17 and look at him now. The change he’s made has been brilliant and then you have the club captain Scott Brown. What he’s done in his career has been brilliant and I can only hope for even half of that.
“Over the next few months my aim is to try and get myself in and about the squad more and then over the next few years it’s to try and establish myself in the team.”
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou lauds debutant Dane Murray after acknowledging need for more “careful” approach from Nir Bitton
Nir Bitton’s loss proved Dane Murray’s gain as the young centre-back, who only turned 18 a month ago, was thrown on for a first senior appearance following the Israeli’s red-card in the eventual 1-1 draw with FC Midtjylland in the clubs’ Champions League second qualifying round first leg.
By Andrew Smith
Wednesday, 21st July 2021, 7:00 am
And Celtic manager Ange Postecolgou – who had to partner Murray with 21-year-old Stephen Welsh following the Israeli’s dismissal following a second booking earned when he jabbed angrily in the face of Anders Dreyer after the winger’s attempt to win a penalty just before the interval – preferred to focus on how his team admirably reset to perform creditably subsequent to going down to ten men rather than round on Bitton for his reckless behaviour.
However, the Greek-Australian did concede: “Nir had already been booked and when you’ve been booked you have to be careful in your actions. When you infringe again, you give the opportunity to the referee to give you another caution. It’s disappointing for him more than anything, because he was really keen to put in a strong performance. He had started really well for us, so it’s disappointing for him that he misses the second game as well.
“The important thing for me was the reaction from the players. I thought the two young centre-halves Dane and Welsh, in a Champions League fixture, were outstanding. If there’s one area to improve? I thought we gave away some unnecessary fouls. They only got into our box a couple of times and in that sense defensively we did a great job.”
‘His ceiling is so high’ – Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers believes sky is limit for up and coming star
By Ross McLeish
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/his-ceiling-is-so-high-celtic-boss-brendan-rodgers-believes-sky-is-limit-for-up-and-coming-star-5274825
0Comments
Published 15th Aug 2025, 23:13 BST
Defender celebrates new contract with maiden senior goal
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers claimed the sky’s the limit for Dane Murray after the centre-back celebrated his new contract with a maiden goal in first-team football.
The 22-year-old headed home Celtic’s third goal from an Arne Engels corner as the Hoops beat Falkirk 4-1 at Parkhead to reach the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals.
The central defender made his first appearances for Celtic in the Champions League play-offs against Midtjylland in 2021 but subsequently suffered two separate cruciate ligament injuries and did not play another first-team game for three years.
He was recalled from a loan spell at Queen’s Park midway through last season but injury ended his campaign prematurely after he returned to the Celtic team. However, he was one of six players drafted in by Rodgers for the cup tie and he took his chance with a deft header from close range.
Rodgers said: “It’s great for him because he’s a great boy. He’s got a lot of potential. And I think over the next 12 to 18 months, he’s going to really grow.
“His ceiling is so high. There’s areas of the game that he needs to clearly, obviously, work on. But he’s 6ft 4in, he’s quick, he can take the ball. He has a comfort with the ball which aligns with top players.
“Just, concentration is something that’s key for defenders. But I really, really like him and that’s hence the reason we’ve tied him down – and I think he’s got a great future.”
Daizen Maeda scored the only goal of an open first half with a diving header and Celtic took full control after the break with a flurry of goals from Alistair Johnston, Murray and Liam Henderson’s own goal, before Keelan Adams notched an impressive consolation.
“I thought the performance was very, very good from the first whistle,” Rodgers said. “You’ve seen the hunger in the team and the intensity in the team.
“The first half we were good with the ball, but not so good without it. It gave Falkirk a couple of wee opportunities to break through. We weren’t aggressive enough and tight enough. When we corrected that at half-time, we really dominated the second half. The goals were excellent and I thought we played really, really well.”
Falkirk manager John McGlynn was frustrated that two Celtic goals came from set-pieces and two others came from his side losing possession deep in their own half. But he was pleased with the way his top-flight newcomers approached the challenge.
“Kind of cheap goals, but Celtic deserved to win by that margin,” he said. “Of course they did with the amount of pressure they had on us, the amount of corners and the amount of attempts. So I didn’t have any complaints about that.
“We were kind of causing our own downfall, but I thought Celtic were very, very good. And we’ll need to take learnings from that. But you’re spending millions of pounds building a team like that. And I know the Celtic fans are still wanting more signings, but there didn’t look much wrong with that team to me.”
Dane Murray shines in collective effort from the Hoops
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/february/27/dane-murray-shines-in-collective-effort-from-the-hoops/
First Team
By Joe Sullivan
Share
27 Feb 2026, 10:15 am
Among the many players who took plaudits from last night’s 1-0 away win over VFB Stuttgart was young centre-back, Dane Murray.
The 22-year-old, like his team-mates, put himself on the line on many occasions as the side fought to keep the clean sheet that was key to the club’s first victory on German soil.
He told Celtic TV following the historic display: “We started brilliantly, the first attack and the ball is in the back of the net.
“We said at the start, the first goal can change the tie, so it’s just about getting that.
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t the way we wanted it to end, but it was a great performance and great effort from the boys.
“There’s always a hunger, no matter the game, we’re always putting our bodies on the line and luckily tonight we just managed to get in the way of them.”
He was also one of a raft of players in the game who aren’t mainstay starters for the Hoops, and they all collectively shone on the night.
Murray said: “It’s the same for everybody, when an opportunity arises you want to try and do your best, and luckily tonight I think I did alright.
‘We’re happy with the performance tonight, but when you exit a competition it’s never nice, so we’re proud of tonight and we go on to Sunday.’
“We go on to Sunday with confidence, so we’ll go in there and do our best.”
Dane Murray silences Celtic critics as Greg Taylor praises his ‘big personality’
https://www.67hailhail.com/news/dane-murray-silences-celtic-critics-as-greg-taylor-praises-his-big-personality/
Greg Taylor has been watching from afar as Dane Murray finally begins to silence his critics in a Celtic shirt.
Taylor, now playing for PAOK, recently highlighted Murray as a ‘top talent’ who has shown ‘big personality’ to overcome the massive hurdles placed in his path.
It is a significant endorsement for a player who has spent the season navigating a complicated defensive hierarchy under Brendan Rodgers, Wilfried Nancy and now Martin O’Neill.
“Big Dane, another one that deserves a shoutout because he has had difficult moments,” said Taylor after Murray’s showing at Ibrox.
Murray was injured for Celtic’s trip to Aberdeen last week, so it meant that he remained on the bench for the Scottish Cup quarter-final clash against Rangers on Sunday.
After the hour mark, O’Neill hooked off Benjamin Arthur and introduced Murray into the action, and he didn’t disappoint as Celtic beat Rangers on penalties.
Greg Taylor is impressed by Dane Murray as he stands tall for Celtic against Rangers
With Cameron Carter-Vickers suffering a season-ending injury, the door opened for Murray to prove he belongs ahead of more senior options.
The 22-year-old was notably picked ahead of Stephen Welsh, who subsequently re-joined Motherwell on loan in January, positioning Murray as the definitive next man up alongside Auston Trusty and Liam Scales.
Despite that pressure, added with several high-profile mistakes, Murray has stood tall, effectively answering those who questioned his readiness for the first team.
Nowhere was this resilience more evident than at Ibrox recently.
In the wake of a difficult afternoon at Tynecastle earlier in the campaign, Murray delivered a composed, towering display in the Glasgow derby cauldron.
It was the kind of ‘big personality’ performance that Taylor alluded to, proving that Murray has the mental fortitude to thrive at Celtic despite his previous injury nightmares, as he told Premier Sports.
“Big Dane, another one that deserves a shoutout because he has had difficult moments,” said Taylor. “If you don’t talk about the two major injuries he has had.
“The difficult moments since he has come back. He is still out there. I think in the last few weeks, he has shown a big personality and shown the real top talent that he is.
“Hopefully, he can kick on from there.”