PAULO BERNARDO has admitted Celtic’s seven-goal drubbing in Dortmund has acted as a reality check.
And the painful lesson spurred the entire team to respond with a display of awesome camaraderie in the goalless draw against Europa League winners Atalanta in Bergamo in midweek.
Brendan Rodgers’ men looked to be in line for another hiding against the top scorers in the Serie A, but a commendable backs-to-the-wall show made certain Kasper Schmeichel was well protected as the side gained a crucial point.
The occasions the Danish keeper was brought into action, he displayed the ability and confidence that has made him a legend in the game.
THREE CHEERS…Celtic heroes Paulo Bernardo, Auston Trusty and Liam Scales celebrate a well-earned point against Atalanta.
Bernardo, who replaced Reo Hatate midway through the second-half against the Italians, said: “The game we played against Borussia Dortmund, we had a lot to learn.
“I think we did that and we had a great response against Atalanta. Our togetherness on the pitch showed that and we need to stick together in every game like this.
“It was important against Dortmund to open our eyes to the reality of the Champions League. It was really hard for us.”
Bernardo, speaking to STV, added: “We needed to respond. We need to be prepared for these games and I think we did a great job.
“We need to focus on that and play each game like it’s a Final for us. We need to show our mentality like we did in this game.
“A point away is always good. Now we need to focus already on the next one.”
A BIG HAND…Daizen Maeda, Luke McCowan, Nicolas Kuhn and Paulo Bernardo acknowledge the travelling support after the scoreless stalemate in Bergamo.
The Hoops are now scheduled to play back-to-back games at Parkhead with RB Leipzig, looking for their first point after three consecutive losses, due a week on Tuesday and Club Brugge 22 days later.
However, Bernardo, who cost £3.5millio when he joined from Benfica in the summer following his impressive season-long loan, and his team-mates will now turn their attention to the Premiership at the weekend.
The champions face Motherwell on Sunday at Fir Park, a venue where they had to scrap all the way to gain two wins last season with a late goal from Matt O’Riley securing the points in a 2-1 victory in September.
And it was Adam Idah who helped the visitors to turn around a 1-0 interval deficit into a 3-1 success in February.
ALEX’S ANGLE: CELTIC’S PRICELESS COMMODITY
