JAMES FORREST believes that Brendan Rodgers and his staff have prepared the players for the challenge they will face in the intense heat in the Republican Stadium tomorrow (5pm Celtic Park time) against the Armenian 3 in a row Champions, Alashkert.
“The coaching staff have been doing their homework and we know it’s going to be a tough game tomorrow,” Forrest said.
“Every game in the Champions League is difficult so we know we need to be ready right from the start.
“They played a team in our country a couple of years ago and we’re up-to-date with that. We know some of their players in the national team, so we are fully aware that it’s going to be a difficult game and we need to make sure we’ll be ready from the start.
“In Champions League qualifiers, there’s never easy games.
“This will be played under difficult circumstances given the weather and the pitch. We know it’s going to be difficult and we fully respecting the opposition.
“We aren’t underestimating Alashkert. They played a team in our country a couple of years ago and progressed into the next round so we need to make sure we are ready and we don’t take this game lightly.
“It’s hard to qualify for the Champions League. We’re going to make sure that we’re ready right from the start.
“It’s going to be difficult but it’s a learning curve for ourselves.
“We’ve played in Kazakhstan which is a similar amount of time to travel so this is not unfamiliar to us. We’ll be prepared come game time and we’ll be ready to perform.
“We’ve played teams in Israel and Kazakhstan in qualification which were hostile atmospheres. All the boys in the team are experienced on that front.”
