The image loading at the top of this article was taken seconds before Celtic took the lead against Leipzig last week. Seven Celtic players pressed the visitors on the edge of their penalty area. Not in shot are the goalkeeper, the right central defender, right back and goal scorer. It says so much about our Champions League campaign so far.
You can do this when you are bossing your opponent, when their confidence is low and they are not able to see the out-ball they otherwise would. It’s a standard Celtic Park scene for domestic games, not so much in the Champions League.
When we tried this in Dortmund, Borussia saw all the out-balls. You will still remember the turnovers they achieved, with green and white jerseys trailing behind. It was too easy for them.
Players and managers learn from those experiences. The first lesson is maybe to trust Celtic Park for play like this. Results are better at home than away throughout the football world because players can stay calm at home and are more prone to panic away.
Leipzig are a far better team than we made them look. 60, 000 of us played a role in that win; it wasn’t all Nicolas and Reo!