Dead rubber? Yes, but an important win all the same…
Last night’s game was essentially a dead rubber, out of Europe and only playing for mere pride and also more money than winning the League Cup brings in. The walk up to Celtic Park was quite eerie, it didn’t have the same feel as Champions League games in the past. It was more like heading into a midweek League Cup tie against a lower league side.
But once inside the stadium it all changed, that famous music blasted out and the same old atmosphere lifted its head as we prepared to do battle. Admittedly it wasn’t as boisterous as the usual European nights, but it was loud all the same.
🍀 “Some people might say this was a nothing game but it meant everything to us in the process we are in…”
Brendan Rodgers reacts to Celtic’s 2-1 Champions League win against Feyenoord 🔽 pic.twitter.com/LQ9VaFXIcp
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) December 13, 2023
Kudos also to the Feyenoord support who were there in large numbers and created a great atmosphere. They were sprinkled all over Paradise, having taken advantage of the availability of spares and there was no bother at all among two sets of supporters who have a mutual respect for each other.
On the park it was highly competitive. Both sides had nothing to play for but it didn’t show as players from both sides were one hundred percent committed. Sometimes over committed especially from the Feyenoord players who were rather competitive shall we say, and were lucky the referee so quite lenient. When you consider we had two players sent off in Rotterdam for instance the comparison is worth noting.
Celtic took the lead through a perfectly taken Luis Palma penalty. But we failed to kick on after that and looked rather disjointed it had to be said. We probably played better against Lazio and certainly did play better against Atletico Madrid and later in the night Brendan Rodgers pointed out that we could have taken nine points from our home games. That has to be our priority next time around so last night told this group that they can win at home in the Champions League.
Especially in the second half when we allowed the Dutch side far too much time on the ball. Their equaliser didn’t come as a surprise, and it hit the players and the crowd hard. It might have been a meaningless game on paper, but we were on course for a win we badly needed so their goal came as a huge hammer blow to the Celtic support.
But it wasn’t over and so it proved as we scored a late winner through an unlikely source in Gustaf Lagerbielke after brilliant build-up play and a superb assist from Matt O’Riley.
Celtic Park erupted like we’d just qualified for the last 16, but it was through sheer relief at actually winning a Champions League game on home soil after a decade long wait. It might have been a dead rubber, but it got that monkey off our back and gave us some much needed confidence, not only proving we can win in Europe, but for going forward domestically.
And we did it without so many of our top players like Carter-Vickers, Maeda, Hatate and Abada with all of them coming back soon.
Last night was hopefully a taster for what’s to come from Celtic in the Champions League under Brendan Rodgers. After all, he said that why he came back.
Just an Ordinary Bhoy
Gustaf Lagerbielke nods in the last minute winner and takes the acclaim of the supporters. Hopefully it does his confidence the world of good as he’s definitely got the potential. pic.twitter.com/pNrkcYASzm
— JustAnOrdinaryBhoy (@ordinarybhoy) December 14, 2023
