I know you are feeling more confident than the cold facts suggest you should be. Bayern Munich are one of the top four favourites to win the Champions League (as are PSG), they comprehensively beat Celtic 3-0 less than two weeks ago and fear no stadium in the world.
But, you have seen similar movies before, where Celtic overcame Juventus, Manchester United, Milan and Barcelona. You know better than to write-off Celtic at home in the Champions League. We have a point to prove: Bayern did not see the best of us in Bavaria earlier this month. They were superior across the field, but they have no idea how true a reflection of our ability this was.
My suspicion is that we can play much better. James Forrest is more suited to the counter-attacking play we can expect, so I don’t think the absence of Patrick Roberts will be material to the challenge. Despite Saturday’s draw, legs have been undertaxed for six days, so muscles and minds will be fresh for the challenge.
This is not Bayern Munich’s cup final. In fact, they have a table-topping clash with Borussia Dortmund ahead on Saturday, on balance, a more important game than tonight’s. We need to use the pain of defeat from two weeks ago. Leverage the fact that we underperformed; showed nothing of our real ability, to cause an upset.
I could easily tell you why third place in the group would be more useful to Celtic than second, but even the narrowest of wins leaves a place in the last 16 a possibility. Despite the coefficient points and possibility of Europa League football into the spring, I’d bite your hand off for a chance of knocking Bayern out.
The cynic in me was surprised to hear Kieran Tierney signed a six-year contract. Deals of this duration are remarkable, few successful players are prepared to commit to anything like this term.
It is great news for Celtic. They don’t really need to worry about losing the player until 2021, when he enters the final two years of his contract, but by then, I am sure we will be speaking to him again.
Kieran appears to have his career mapped out. His Generation (cough) at the club is certain to be very successful. He will win many trophies, represent Celtic on stages across the continent, and earn a significant amount of money doing so.
We are doing something right.
Enjoy the game. Drink in every stomach-knotting second of it.
BRENDAN RODGERS – The Road to Paradise is available now from CQNBookstore.com and for the first 100 sold on the bookstore we will include a free gift.
Available now at CQN bookstore.com
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WBC- weather proof too, never sure what forecast is when she does it…:)
SoT
We’ll see. Brendan’s approach is to “impose our game on the opposition”, such that they have to change the way they’re set up.
Two problems with that in the two big matches thus far:
1) Our game has been very poor – with and without the ball.
2) The opposition have reacted by scoring goals.
Added to which, Heynckes plays with largely the same approach as Brendan, only his team is faster and more coherent. Brendan is in essence asking his players to out-Bayern Bayern, which is physically brutal, and mentally challenging.
Let’s hope you’re right and the bhoys expose a mentality problem in the Bayern team.
Billy Connelly turns up the scroungers hoose without his poppy on.
A Rebel to the end !
Bada…when Judith’s on it’s always sunny and warm… :-)
Bada…btw-I know Judith well and she is aware she has fans on CQN…I do not lie…
2004 SC Final on Sky 403, Henrik’s last game
THE BATTERED BUNNET .
I too am very doubtful but a recent wee phone chat with a London residing Raith Rovers pal who never lets me forget an event in November 94 reminded me of that you never know thing .
WBC- My CQN charity idea is a calendar……ask her, any chance of….:)
I have 1 spare adult ticket for the North Stand upper sect 410 tonight if anyone is looking. Face value.
HH
I’m starting to get the usual CL pre-match nerves.
Last week I predicted that we would beat the Dons 3-0. Tonight I find it impossible to call. If we are on our game, I think we could get a 1-1 draw with Moussa scoring.
On the flip side, if we don’t get into our passing game and resort to aimlessly hoofing the ball up the park, we will lose heavily.
Heading into town soon for a pre-match drink to settle the nerves.
COYBIG
Tonight when in the 67th minute we celebrate our 50th Big Cup anniversary we should keep in mind that 6 days later our opponent won their 1st European trophy which was celebrated with as much gusto among the Celtic fraternity as the one the week before.
BM won 1-0 aet against a side that dropped their on form goal scorer alex willoughby, a silky inside forward who had scored 17 goals in 14 games up to the final, he was left out for the cart horse roger hynd normally a full back or centre half who had been converted in the reserves to centre.
He would do a tam forsyth and sclaff the late equalising goal against us in the Jinky 2 goal game that won us the League in monsoon conditions at hades. His immediate opponent was the Kaiser lol. He would have a goal rightly chalked off and miss a sitter in extra time.
That deidco side, which had 3 defenders as the inside forward trio, was slated by John Sanderson and John Mackenzie resulting in both being banned from hades for a spell. That was back in the day when the Scottish papers employed proper journalists.
Bada…with a photie of you in a different pose for each month?
Tontine…you have some memory for details…indeed Willoughby was a fine underused player for them…and if MY memory serves me well, AW was a cousin of their striker Jim Forrest…n’est pas?
Ok…dugs hassling me now so, aff out-off oot…
Does anyone know if the game is being shown anywhere in Daytona Beach, Florida?
T
Maxibhoy- Oldtim was looking for a ticket earlier, maybe someone could contact him
WBC- Great idea, wee Cristina Hendriks said she might be fully booked…
Roger Hynd .?
An absolutely / perfectly typical Deady Bears player. ” Scored ” a goal v Bayern in 67 ——-rightly chopped off for a foul on the keeper -no surprise there -eh .
Morning after that game there was a big painted with a brush graffito at Queens X / Garscube Rd –
FRANZ ROTH.. Unfortunately, it was quickly obscured .
If any of you guys , know the chap that plays the music at CP. have a word with him . Against Astana .he played YNWA with less than two thirds of the fans in place in the stadium . Then against PSG he gave us the Liverpool version ,music all the way through , we don’t do the Liverpool version. no one sings it like the bhoys .
Jimtim- CL clubs can only play club songs, up until a certain time i’m sure? Agree on the version…
Good afternoon Celts!
Bit of an off topic post here but if the below interests you I would love 30 seconds of your time….
Fantasy Football is a game which grips many across the country each season, however, there is nothing aimed directly at the Scottish football fan with all competitions designed around the (boring!) EPL.
If a Scottish Fantasy Football league starting next season is something that would interest you, please take just 30 seconds out of your afternoon to complete the following survey:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LFTZS8K
You can also give the Twitter account a follow if that’s yer thing…!
@SFF_2018_2019
Hail, Hail!
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 31ST OCTOBER 2017 1:51 PM
When it comes to Judith, Bada is colour blind…
He’ll never even notice with his x-ray specs on-))
Schadenfreude in late May / early June 67 included going around whistling a current hit of the day -Kaiser Bills Batman . by Whistling somebody or other. It worked nicely . A choon so crap I refuse to link it.
BADA BING!! on 31ST OCTOBER 2017 2:48 PM
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Thanks for the reply . I didn’t, know that , nothing better than a full stadium, scarfs aloft , belting out our anthem .. if it’s performed right ,there will be nothing but phone flashes going off in the Bayern end . Doesn,t half make you proud .
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 31ST OCTOBER 2017 2:33 PM
Tontine…you have some memory for details…indeed Willoughby was a fine underused player for them…and if MY memory serves me well, AW was a cousin of their striker Jim Forrest…n’est pas?
*aye they were, I was glad tae see the back of forrest as was probably big Billy. I recall being in the maths class in high school and the teacher, he had been on our books as a lad but was mainly a bit player on the lower leagues, coached the school teams.
He had a handbook about Scottish school teams and there was a photies in it of both cousins playing for Glasgow or maybe Scottish schools, we were gutted tae realise they were hades bound at the time.
They really know how tae ruin a good player over there. Ironically both would end up with the sheep where they would play more games there than at deidco. They also played at Drumchapel the gether who at that time played in the hoops.
Tontine Tim
Was the teacher Jack Gilroy by any chance?
SLABHOY – DUNTOCHER IS GREEN AND WHITE on 31ST OCTOBER 2017 3:25 PM
Tontine Tim Was the teacher Jack Gilroy by any chance?
*the same one, terrible teacher he was only interested in fitba which at the age of 14 isnae that bad. The only thing of note he taught us was Pythagoras Theorem, told us tae memorise it as it could come in useful later on in life. Damn right there as I spent my working life in construction and engineering..
SOUTH OF TUNIS on 31ST OCTOBER 2017 3:01 PM
Schadenfreude in late May / early June 67 included going around whistling a current hit of the day -Kaiser Bills Batman . by Whistling somebody or other. It worked nicely . A choon so crap I refuse to link it.
*Jack Smith, I much preferred Snoopy v The Red Baron by the Royal Guardsmen.
TT
I remember Willoughby giving the ol salute to massed Celtic fans in Crown St Gorbals, after our league cup in win 66. The deadclub team bus had a window panned in and made a hasty exit. Crazy to think plod allowed this route. To this day my old man calls him a ned but its true he was actually a decent player, another victim of numerous Ibrox purges during the Stein years. Him and his cousin Jim Forrest went to Aberdeen who gave us real scare in the 70-71 league win.
TT – My own story involving him was when he was my registration teacher at St Pat’s in Dumbarton and we used his room at beaks etc. I found a maths exam paper on his desk he was giving to the 2nd years. He was asking them to draw a Venn Diagram using the following data.. The data consisted of a number of Scottish Football teams in the then 1st and 2nd Divisions – the answer to the question was the teams who were promoted / demoted that year! You couldn’t pass a maths test with Jack if you didn’t know any football!
Made me laugh at the time tho’…
Excitement building now…(can the huns even remember what it feels like to have a champions league night?) Anyway, if you see any Bayern Munchinghandbags fans, give them a wave and a thumbs up. Remember, they made sure there was only one European winner in Glasgow during that beautiful summer of 67…
As my excitement at the prospect of tonight’s match grows, so does my confidence. It maybe because Lewandowski and Muller are out, but I think we will sneak a win.
Hail Hail
Walk with hope in your hearts Celts,enjoy every second of the spectacle
make our German friend welcome,nae gee’in them Tenants :-)
hail hail
Wish the Big Yin (or anyone else) would tell the establishment where to stick their gongs.
Don’t know him, but feel a bit let down by him.
DELANEYS 3-47pm
Hail Hail to that ! KT for 1st goal , hope everybody has great time in BV ! Hoping to get pre-match pint in Crown Creighton if up there in time before game , COYBIG !!
CALL OF JUAREZ 4-02pm
I would echo that statement !
5 years ago today THE LIQUIDATION OF RANGERS OCCURRED.
Tend to agree with John Hartson,no one else was involved in their slow suicide,except the candidates currently being mentioned in dream team terms.Walter Graeme,murmurs even Sir David of Cheat was buying in
They learn nothing .
They done it all and history has recorded it.
HH
Scottish Fantasy Football @14:52
Ha ha ha!
Whaddya mean, and where’ve ye been, that “there is nothing aimed directly at the Scottish football fan”. ??
https://spfl.co.uk/clubs/rangers/
Scoddish Fantasy Football, alive (!) and well since 2012.