MATT O’RILEY believes the Champions League brings out the best in Celtic.
The stylish midfielder is ready to play his part in the Hoops’ third outing in Group F against RB Leipzig in Germany tomorrow night.
Ange Postecoglou’s side go into the crucial confrontation on the back of two unconvincing performances on the home front with a dreadful display in the lacklustre 2-0 loss to St Mirren in Paisley although they picked up a bit in the 2-1 victory over Motherwell at Parkhead on Saturday.
NET PROFIT…Matt O’Riley gets a close-up view of Kyogo Furuhashi’s opening goal after Motherwell keeper Liam Kelly had blocked an effort from the midfielder.
SHAKE ON IT…Kyogo Furuhashi offers a helping hand to Matt O’Riley after his contribution to Celtic’s breakthrough goal in the 2-1 win over the Fir Parkers.
They go into the match at the Red Bull Arena – which kicks off at 5.45pm – still looking for their first triumph in Europe’s most prestigious competition after a 3-0 home defeat to Real Madrid and a 1-1 deadlock against Shakhtar Donetsk in Poland.
O’Riley said: “If we perform to the levels we did against Shakhtar, we would be confident of coming away with another positive result.
“Regardless of who we play against, we always feel that we can come away with a positive result.
“We know they are a good side, but we are also a very good side. So, I think if we are on it then, yes, we’ve got a great chance of winning the game.
“It said a lot that there was a hint of disappointment that we didn’t come away with the three points in Poland.
“You can be the better team in a match and still not win. I think that was an example of that.”
ON THE BALL…Matt O’Riley is in a positive frame of mind before a third Champions League test.
Danish Under-21 playmaker O’Riley is still in with a chance of getting a call-up from his adopted nation for the World Cup Finals in Qatar on November 26-December 18.
A good performance in Leipzig would help his claim, but the London-born star is concentrating completely on club matter and, speaking to The Herald, added: “Even against Real Madrid, for the first however many minutes, we were, in my opinion, the more threatening team.
“But due to them being a bit more clinical than us, that separated the two sides.
“But if we can just tidy up on a few things, we’ve got every chance.”
