Ange Postecoglou was perhaps a little more cautious in answering the questions put to him at the Media Conference earlier this afternoon, which was attended by The Celtic Star, asking the final two questions of the day on behalf of the Celtic Fan Media.  One of our questions, on how winning the league in his first season at Celtic, given the shambles he inherited last summer, was from a poster on the Celtic Noise forum after we asked supporters to submit a question that we’d put to Ange on their behalf.

The Celtic Star question was on the pursuit of European glory being Ange’s ultimate ambition as Celtic manager with today being the 52nd anniversary of Celtic’s second appearance in a European Cup Final. Jock Stein also walked in on the club at a low point yet with a few years had turned us into the Champions of Europe. We asked Ange what he could learn from that.

Here’s how the Media Conference went today with the Celtic manager ahead of the match against Hearts tomorrow lunchtime, remember it’s a Noon kick-off folks…

READ THIS…The sad story of Celtic’s second European Cup Final, losing to Feyenoord on this day in 1970

Q: You got confirmation that the winners of the Scottish Premiership will go straight into the group stages of the Champions League, how much will that enable you to build for next season if you get over the line?

Ange Postecoglou: “Yeah, I guess it is a great opportunity for us and not just a build but to structure our whole pre-season programme pretty differently than we have in recent years . There’s a whole host of things that come along with it and should we get over the line and get direct qualification it gives an opportunity for to really strategically plan next season with some certainty.”

Q: If you win this weekend and other results go your way you will be crowned champions, does it bother you how or when you win?

Ange Postecoglou: “From my perspective, we want to finish strong and we want to play as well as we possibly can in these last three games starting tomorrow and if that coincides with us getting the prize then great. Ultimately we are still in the position where we need to play well in the last three games and get the results we need.”

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Q: You have won another manager of the month award and you will credit your whole backroom team with this one again, won’t you?

Ange Postecoglou: “I don’t want people to think it is some sort of gimmick on my behalf. It is what we are about. People work hard every day, not just myself, and I think when you win an individual award you are very cognizant of the fact that you are part of a greater group. It is important that all the people who put in the hard work on a daily basis also get recognition. I think the award is reflective of how consistent we have been particularly since the break and that’s a credit to everyone involved.”

Q: You said it is all about performances is it important that your players do not get caught up with the ifs and buts of what can happen in the next few games?

Ange Postecoglou: “It is only natural I guess, as you are dealing with human beings whether that’s players, staff, supporters or whoever, everyone has a sense of expectation and I’m sure there is a lot of it where we just want to get it over the line. We have three games and the opportunity to put on some strong performances and create some memorable moments for ourselves.

“We always remind ourselves of why we are in this position in the first place. That is through focusing on our performance and respecting every opponent and trying to play our best football every game. That is why we are here and that shouldn’t change because we are in sight of the finish line.”

Q: The Champions League income could boost the club by £40million will that allow you to do anything different or change targets at all now that the extra money is coming in and will it improve the chances of keeping Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers?

Ange Postecoglou: “I guess from my perspective the planning doesn’t really change. My view was that we had to rebuild the squad this year and change things fairly drastically because they needed to change.

“It wasn’t like we had the option and the reality of it was that we lost a lot of players from last year and the team had been together for a while and got to the end of a cycle and we had to make those changes. This was the first stage of the build and irrespective of what we were doing next year in terms of competition we wanted to strengthen and that was always in the planning.

“That really hasn’t changed and we know the areas we need to strengthen on and off the field and we have identified we need to recruit players in and to get the squad to be stronger. I don’t think being in the Champions League changes that too much from my perspective.

“It may make us a more attractive proposition for players to want to come to our club and that might be an extra carrot that opens up another market for us. It is not like we go from the club we are to being a club that will spend at a different level, there are certain disciplines around that and my belief is that you have a plan and you try to stick to it irrespective of what comes your way and that has proved successful for us this year.

“If we want to replicate the success we have had in the transfer market next season then we have to identify the right type of player rather than looking for players in a different sort of price bracket.”

Q: Jota and Carter-Vickers – any update on them?

Ange Postecoglou: “Nothing has really changed. We are in discussions with them obviously and I have said all along with these kinds of things it is never a simple process. Both players have had unbelievable years for us and have been outstanding contributors and both are really happy here.  Our intent is to try and keep them at our football club. With all these things you need a point where all parties agree and I am hopeful we will get to that point. At this stage, we are not quite there yet.”

READ THIS…Celtic Star Matt O’Riley on his Champions League Dream

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Q. (the)Rangers reached the Europa League final,  what are your thoughts on that, what does it say about the levels of Scottish football and what does it say about your team as you are six points ahead of them in the league?

Ange Postecoglou: “They have done awfully well and they have deserved it and they were the better team over the two legs in the semi-final.  They have been really strong in Europe all year and it has been a tough week for them with the passing of Jimmy Bell. Whenever you work inside a football club and you lose someone as being such an integral part of the fabric it must have been a tough week for the players and the staff who dealt with.

“They are a very good football team and deserve to be in the final but they proved that last season when they went through the season undefeated which is no mean feat and this year with strong performances in pretty much all of the competitions. For us, I knew that was going to be our biggest challenge this season apart from our own form and how we performed and I knew if we were going to be successful we would have to overcome a pretty formidable opponent.”

Q: They could win the Europa League final and there could be two Scottish teams in the group stages of the Champions League – that would be brilliant, wouldn’t it?

Ange Postecoglou: “Yes, it would definitely. I think both clubs would have earned it.”

Q: Did that Champions League spot add a wee bit of extra pressure this season because it was such an important thing to get?

Ange Postecoglou: “I don’t know if it was pressure but I definitely saw it as an opportunity. It was pretty evident early on that whoever won the league then there was a good chance they would go straight into the Champions League group stages.

“I saw it as a great opportunity for us after the disappointment of last season and if we were successful then it guaranteed us a chance to play in the greatest competition in Europe. I knew if we could get everything right and win the competition this year then it was an extra carrot for sure.”

READ THIS...A re-evaluation of our European ambitions is essential

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Q: Hearts have nothing to lose and players playing for cup final places – does that make them a dangerous opponent as they have been a good challenge so far?

Ange Postecoglou: “Irrespective of that they have had a strong season and they have been really solid in that third position and by a decent gap to the rest of the field. They have been consistent all year and every game against them has been a good game.

“Irrespective of them being in the cup final or not this is a good challenge for us but we sit where we are because of our own form and our own performances and we’ve had to overcome some pretty determined challenges in recent weeks in our last three games we have played teams who have been in pretty good form and we’ve managed to get through them pretty well and that’s our task again tomorrow.

“We are making sure that we are prepared to play against a tough opponent knowing that if we can perform at the levels we can then we can overcome that.”

Q: What do you think this squad needs to get to the next level?

Ange Postecoglou: “There is a number of areas where I think this season in the earlier part of the year we did not have the depth in quality in certain positions to be able to carry the workload of having a 60-game season. We are still in the stages of developing our players and developing our game style and for me, there are still areas without specifying positions where I think we can have more quality in terms of our depth and in terms of the level of performance we put in.

“There won’t be the amount of activity that we had last season but I think the activity we have this year will be significant as we will hopefully bring players that will improve us immediately rather than sort of bring players in who will just add to the squad.”

Q: Hearts have the Scottish Cup final on the horizon – do you expect a different style to what you have faced in the other games this season?

Ange Postecoglou: “Not really, I don’t think their approach will change as they can play a bit freer without major consequences on a negative result for them. Whenever you play a team like that there is always the possibility that they may be aggressive or expansive. I think they have been pretty disciplined with their approach all season and we don’t expect to see too much of a change in the way they play their football.

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The Celtic Star: “52 years ago today Celtic played in our second European Cup Final.  Like yourself Jock arrived at Celtic when the club was struggling and within a few season he had turned us into Champions of Europe. Have you studied how Jock managed to do that and is following in his footsteps on the European stage your ultimate ambition as Celtic manager? 

Ange Postecoglou: “I am well aware of the background of Jock Stein’s reign here at Celtic. I am probably not the only one who has studied that pretty closely – if it was just a matter of studying it and repeating it then I think others would have done it. I think it is a little bit more intricate than that.

“My ambition for this football club is to make it the best football club it can be and play at the highest possible level. That means that we always have to be challenged for success domestically and to make an impact in Europe.

“From my perspective that’s the ambition to make us the strongest possible team we can be and to make a consistent impact in Europe. For that to happen like most other clubs it takes a little while to build it to that stage but that’s the ambition.”

The Celtic Star:  The Celtic supporters believe you are building something special so where would winning the league and taking the club into the Champions League group stages in your first season rank beside your other achievements in the game?

Ange Postecoglou: “It is hard for me to articulate that until we do it, you just don’t know until that feeling hits you. I know it has been an enormous challenge this season for sure and not just for me but for everyone involved.

“For a number of reasons should we be successful then I know from my own perspective when I reflect on it I will know the enormous effort that has been put in to get us to that space.

“For me to start thinking about that before we have actually achieved it, I can’t do that as I am just now wired that way. I think you will get a much better and truer and more natural response as to my feelings on it after we achieve it.”

Watch Ange Postecoglou’s Media Conference from earlier today below..