LEIGH GRIFFITHS reckons that the 7000 mile round trip to Armenia to play Alashkert in intense heat is a price worth paying to avoid having to face Linfield again in the Champions League qualifying rounds.
Griffiths was subjected to sectarian abuse in the match against the Irish minnows last July and had a half bottle of Buckfast thrown at him as he tried to take a corner. Making a 5-1 gesture behind his back to their supporters – who traditionally link them to both the Ibrox clubs 1872-2012 and 2012-2018. Celtic had beaten the latest version 5-1 at Ibrox towards the end of the previous season.
“I was praying we didn’t get them. I’m not sure I would have got in and out without a police escort.
“It seems we always get thrown a difficult tie, whether it be the qualifying rounds or the group stage.
“Broony will need the factor 50 on his head, but we will just need to adapt to the conditions. It is a two-legged affair and we know we are coming back to Celtic Park, where the crowd always gives us a boost.
“I know no-one wants to remember that tie in Gibraltar, but it was up there in terms of the hardest conditions I’ve ever faced. The heat, the pitch – everything went against us.
“We aren’t used to the intense heat and performances on the night away from home sometimes haven’t been good enough. Thankfully, nine times out of 10 we get the job done back at Celtic Park.
“It is difficult getting through three qualifying ties let alone four, but we just need to get on with the job in hand.
“We have been to countries such as Kazakhstan and Israel, where conditions are tough. We’d like a decent result in the first-leg this time but we know with the crowd behind us at home we have a chance of getting the job done.”
With Odsonne Edouard committing his future to Celtic last week in a £4.5million transfer from Paris Saint Germain, Griffiths’ own contract situation remains on the to do list for both the player and the club – but a deal is close and should be finalised before the action gets under way.
???? "We’ll be well prepared for it. We’ll give ourselves plenty recovery time to get over there and get the job done."@Leighgriff09 looking forward to #UCL test!https://t.co/kiuNEVd29r
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) June 20, 2018
The fact that Celtic opted to use Griffiths to model the new away strip – which is absolutely stunning by the way – tends to suggest that Celtic are pretty relaxed about keeping their number 9.
Griffiths too seems to be of a similar mindset.
“We are inching further forward. It’s getting closer, there’s not far to go. We are about 85 per cent done. There’s just a couple of tweaks required and then it will be completed.
“It won’t be a weight off my mind. I’ve still got more than two years on my current deal.
“However, the fact the club are even talking about a new contract gives me joy I am going to be here for, basically, the rest of my career. When it does get done and signed I will be delighted.”
All we need now is for the rumours that Moussa might be extending his stay to be true and we’ll be over the moon.
Excellent stuff this week on The Celtic Star Podcast, make sure you have a listen…
