Brendan Rodgers has congratulated his side after the side comprehensively dispatched Alashkert by three goals to nil.
A Moussa Dembele double and a strike by James Forrest put the game beyond the Armenians at Celtic Park. Rodgers paid homage to his side after the game.
“I’m really proud of the team. We had the advantage coming into the game and we strengthened that, but it’s still a challenge to play that long with 10 men and the players coped with that very well.
“I thought it was very good. When we had 11 men, I thought we looked really bright going forward, the speed of our game was good and we looked a real threat.
“We took the lead and very soon after that we lost a man. In our defensive organisation, we were very calm, organised and pressed at the right moments. We dominated the game, considering we had 10 men, so I’m really proud of the team.”
Meanwhile, Rodgers said he was looking forward to a repeat test of Rosenborg in the next round.
“They were two tight games the last time we played. They’ll come here and I’m sure they’ll be nice and compact like they did last year, very tight lines and we’ll have to be patient in that game.”
However, unfortunately, Celtic were dealt with a duo of scares ahead of the clash with the Norwegians. Moussa Dembele felt tightness in the hamstring and Rodgers was hopeful that it’d be just tightness on the part of the Frenchman.
“He was tight in the back of his leg and we just need to assess it tomorrow and over the next couple of days. He’s as fit as he’s been since I’ve been here, at this stage of the season, so we’re hoping it’s just tightness and he’ll be ok.”
The second scare that Rodgers endured on the night was seeing Jozo Simunovic shown a red card.
“I think it’s one of those ones in European football, always difficult when your foot is that high. Thought the referee could have kept him on the pitch and gave him a warning as I don’t think it’s intentional.”
