Former Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata remembers nothing about last year’s Betfred League Cup win over Aberdeen after his sickening head clash with Gary Mackay-Steven.

The former Aberdeen winger revealed the news as he recalled the incident during last year’s final at Hampden Park when he was felled by the Belgian international.

While the 29-year-old was rushed to hospital and suffered headaches for two months afterwards, pal Boyata returned to the action after treatment for a cut head as Celtic went on to win the match 1-0.

The defender later limped out of the final with a hamstring injury and Mackay-Steven, now starring for New York City in MLS, insisted that saved the centre-half from anything more serious given his memory blank.

He said: “I’m good, good pals with Boyata but he has the hardest head ever!

“The cross came in, I’ve headed it and he has tried to clear but when I’ve headed it to the side he has come full force into the side of my head. I bounced my head when I landed.

“He actually continued and had to go off later with a hamstring injury. But he says he can’t remember the game! 

“He was concussed as well as he can’t remember anything about the game, whereas I can. He was lucky he had to come off.

“My girlfriend was taking all my messages and he was pestering her for so long asking if he could come and see me. He had won the game but was really worried and wanted to come to see me.”

Mackay-Steven added: “Ultimately every concussion is a brain injury and it was the strangest thing to go through. I wasn’t allowed to train or go on a bike or do anything.

“It was a scary thing to be honest. One of the worst injuries I had.”