Celtic face Danish runners-up Midtjylland in the Champions League qualification round 2, with the first leg played at Celtic Park five weeks from now. While there is an enormous amount of work for Ange Postecoglou and Dom McKay to turn the current squad into a force to be reckoned with between now and then, this is a decent draw.
Midtjylland disintegrated in May. They won one, drew one and lost two of their final four games to blow the league title by a point. Manager, Bo Henriksen, has been in the Midtjylland job just a week longer than Ange has been Celtic boss, so like us, they are very much a team in transition.
Unlike Sweden, Denmark do not play through the summer. Danish football has a short, seven-week, break from May to July. The new season starts the weekend before Midtjylland travel to Glasgow. On paper, this puts them ahead of us but I doubt that seven-week window allows them to return to training much ahead of Celtic’s return next week.
Having done what looked like the hard work against then Danish champions, Copenhagen, in a Europa League away leg in February last year, Celtic capitulated at home, further exposing some of the wounds that would cost us dearly last season. Copenhagen exited the tournament at the quarterfinal stage, where they lost a one-off tie to Manchester United by a single goal. This was an opportunity a better Celtic team would have made more of.
Lots to do but this is one we should rise to the occasion for.
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If some on here cannot be forensic & realistic about our short-term prospects – it is not my fault.
Realism is NOT defeatism. It is THE essential ingredient in planning ANY venture whether short-term, medium-term, or, long-term – without it there is only ‘whistling in the dark’.
JHB on 16TH JUNE 2021 3:16 PM
How can there be any optimism surrounding this tie?
…Celtic supporters, faithful through and through…
…win, lose or draw…
And others…
Maybe you just don’t get it.
Jhb
I take it you’ve forensically analysed our opponents before writing us off – seems only fair
SAINT STIVS on 16TH JUNE 2021 5:00 PM
When we beat the Danes, who is the potential opponents in the next qualifier ?
Assuming PSV and Sparta Prague also go through, it would one of those, Genk or Spartak Moscow…
I’m putting “whistling in the dark” into my clueless, and joyless bingo card.
Make America Great again!
Get Brexit done!
SNPcult!
The lady doth protest too much, me thinks.
Boringsoundbitepolitics CSC
https://youtu.be/YyhGtKAkNTo
JHB, don’t take this the wrong way, but I often disagree with you. Not this time though. We’ll do well to get past the Danes given where we find ourselves.
A new manager who takes time to get his methods across combined with limited time to train as a group (Euro guys will only be back 5 minutes) and our usual slow transfer market forays mean we’ll likely be going with a defence of Ralston, Welsh, Biton and Taylor – not one of those players seem suited to our manager’s preference for a high defensive line and full backs bombing forward.
The Danes, by contrast, will be a relatively settled team. Paul talks about them imploding to miss out on the title – which is true – but they’re coming from a higher starting point than we are after last season’s debacle. Plus we’re unlikely to have sorted out inability to defend set pieces.
I’m as pessimistic as you about our chances and I think there’s a good body of evidence to support that view.
Who would win in a fight between utter shambles and cluster fcuk?
We’ve faced many Euro teams as favourites and then failed to go through, so maybe this time it will be the reverse.
Though it is likely that we’ll be favourites for this tie despite our current issues 😁
Wales playing very well, though haven’t been able to get a goal
BOURNESOUPRECIPE on 16TH JUNE 2021 5:16 PM
Lmfao 🤣😂
See youse. See me. See them. See us.
Rab c
Al tell youse this Bhoy.
Are football supporters from Czech Republic and Croatia allowed to attend the euro games in Glasgow without a week of self isolation in a hotel?
Seemed to be quite a few supporters at the game on Monday. If not, it seems a bit unfair on Scots returning from working abroad over the next few weeks to have to pay to stay in a covid hotel.
Ta.
18 yards.
Whistling in the dark by Bruce Springsteen.
Pure class by the way.
Gary
I would expect there are quite a few Croatians and Czechs living in the UK.
Spidey
We’ve got good players who have definitely lost their way – I’m hopeful for a quick response to our new manager – the internationals not doing us any favours.
Wales finally score 1 nil
Gene
True.
Just wondering if it was another exception being made for the euros.
Just as well Tyrone Mings didn’t go to school up here.
His life would have been a misery.
Easy to be pessimistic when forecasts of team selections are based purely on speculation and last season’s form.
Liam Shaw and Boli Bolingoli ( I know ) may be in the side, the transfer window is wide open and we’ll sign more than one player before the game.
The game is also on the season ticket, so there will be Celtic supporters in Paradise, and we’ll rightly be favourites.
Bournesouprecipe
12,000 allowed into Hamden so we should get around 15,000
SPIDEY101 on 16TH JUNE 2021 5:19 PM
——-
You make real points – I agree.
I have no qualms with anyone disagreeing with me especially if they put forward a coherent rebuttal to anything that I say – however the majority of the time it is only vitriol, abuse & name-calling which diminishes the level of debate.
There are blogs out there where it is de rigueur to say the same thing ad infinitum – CQN is not like that, although there are those who would censor & ban opposing views if they got the chance.
The modus operandi is to constantly label and wait for the rest of the posse to pile-in.
If the 19th July is stuck to I’d expect at least 50% capacity
Jhb
I see you haven’t offered a forensic analysis of our opponents – not surprised
Garygillespie
We’ve to register and let Celtic know that we’d like to use the season ticket we’ve just bought 👍
Wales started the game on the front foot and has continued knowing how important a win is – something Scotland could learn from
Of course they have an ex port vale manager
Gene
I would love you to be right but Social distancing between people from different households is still 2metres.
I feel that 5000 will be the most we can expect.
Hampden Park the worst stadium in the Euros ?
Bale hangs a leg out – penalty
misses by a mile – justice done
A penalty as ridiculous as his hair style.
Stutter step blows Bale’s technique
ERNIE
You got something against Sumos?
Bigbhoy
That has to end sometime – they have full house at Wimbledon planned and other test events – hopefully outdoor events at least can start ramping up.
Fowl by Turkey
bale should be ashamed of himself
a player with enough ability to step up and rattle it into a corner without having to do the staggered run up to fool a keeper