Brendan Rodgers watched the Champions League draw at Lennoxtown with his players and staff before quickly turning attention back to matters at hand and the Glasgow Derby preparations for yesterday’s match against theRangers at Celtic Park…
The transfer window closing was sandwiched in between the new format Champions League draw and the game against theRangers, so perhaps the ‘noise’ surrounding yesterday’s game in the days leading up to the first Derby of the season wasn’t as loud as it usually is.
For Brendan Rodgers though it all worked out perfectly well. The Champions League draw is exciting and could have been much tougher, the transfer window closed with a flurry of incoming Celtic signing who made the bench for yesterday’s Glasgow Derby win over theRangers by 3-0, with Celtic you suspect able to have scored more if required. The result flattered the visitors.
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Rather than take a day off in the first day of the international break, Brendan Rodgers was on media duties this morning, speaking to talkSport, where former Rangers striker Ally McCoist was in the studio. Asked if he was still basking in the glory of beating theRangers, Brendan turned the focus to the Champions League.
“It’s going to be a really exciting period for us through to January with some tough games in there. We’ve got to really attack it and we’ve brought in players who can help us do that,” he said.
“I actually quite enjoyed the Champions League draw. There was anticipation because we’d been used to the old format. Would there still be the same excitement? But we watched it at the training ground and really enjoyed it. We play last season’s Champions League finalists and Europa League winners, RB Leipzig and Young Boys.
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“Aston Villa will be in the end of January. I’ve been to Villa Park a number of times in the Premier League and it’s a wonderful, traditional stadium with a beautiful pitch. Unai has done a great job there over the last couple of years, getting them qualification. They look like a club really well organised behind the scenes, providing the manager with the tools to go and elevate the team. We look forward to that and one of my former players is Youri Tielemans,” the Celtic manager noted.
On yesterday’s game Brendan gave this insight, bringing the way that the transfer window worked out for Celtic into his assessment.
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“You felt the energy in the stadium before the game even started and we closed out the market with some very good signings. The club were great, bringing the players in we wanted to strengthen and we played well. We played the game to a very good level. These games, no matter how well you are playing, you can never just assume. You’ve got to get your work done and we did that very well.
“It was very good. We started the game and our distances in our pressing was a fraction deeper which gave theRangers centre halves a little bit of comfort. (the)Rangers had some passes in the game but once we had that moment where we broke through the pressure around the 10-minute mark to show our quality and speed we were very good in the game. We had a really good balance between our speed in our attack, our pressing and counter attack.
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“People don’t understand the state up here in terms of Celtic and (the)Rangers. There have been many players who have come up here, who have played in the Premier League, and have arrived at Celtic or (the)Rangers and found it really difficult to deal with the pressure and actually they go back to the Premier League and have a good career. It’s how you deal with the pressure up here at both these clubs.
“If you look through the spine of our team: Kasper Schmeichel is still a world class goalkeeper, Cam (Carter-Vickers) who marshals the defence very well, Callum McGregor is an unbelievable captain with real humility and plays with quality and Kyogo through the middle. His pace and threat in behind is second to none. It was very much a collective.
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“There’s a real build up to these games and I enjoy the energy around them. I always try to prepare like it’s my very first game. They’re very tense games but the build up was a little bit quieter this time with the transfer window and Champions League draw. But I really enjoy them and it’s one of the iconic derbies in world football.”
Brendan also called for the re-introduction of away supporters at the fixture as soon as possible. That was already agreed for the games this season but failings at Ibrox to begin never mind complete the agreed changes regarding access and safety meant that no away fans were allowed yesterday and that will run onto the game at Ibrox or Hampden (tbc) in early January 2025.
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“It’s what makes the game,” Brendan said, referring to the away supporters. “When I first came to Celtic in 2016 I really enjoyed both games at Celtic Park and Ibrox because it’s the uniqueness of the fixture. The passion in Scotland doesn’t get much greater in football and for Celtic and (the)Rangers it’s an incredible atmosphere with both sets of fans in the ground.
We hoped it was (sorted) for this season and I really hope we get back to normality after these first two fixtures,” the Celtic manager said.
In other news, Keith Jackson at Daily Record is not taking yesterday’s result well at all.
An all timer here: pic.twitter.com/UhU99Imtam
— 🍔 Gastro Celtic 🍀 (@Gastro_Celtic) September 2, 2024
Rodgers is spot on with regarding how you deal with the pressure involved of a Glasgow Derby?
This factor keeps ourselves way ahead of the scum?
Even with ourselves not firing on all cylinders last season, the scum still couldn’t get the better of ourselves?
We are already showing this season how irrelevant the scum are becoming to ourselves, in our plans to be moving onto a far bigger stage, that doesn’t involve that shower of shite whatsoever imo?
We are currently looking like a worthy CL team at present, which will bring another level of pressure also?
Possibly bigger than in many a season beforehand, with the expectations and demands increased now, especially with a very favourable draw for ourselves?
Yet, we are so fortunate that we have such a strong core of players, that are well use to the pressure involved within our club?
Also they have proven time and time again how they can deal with the pressure and able to deliver?
And all without letting complacency creep into our squad, especially as some very strong characters within our squad, who wouldn’t allow such a thing to develop, along with Rodgers also?
Actually believe that we are potentially in the strongest all round position, that our club has been for a CL campaign imo?
Of course injuries are always a concern, but eventually we are potentially in a better position to be able to deal with such occurances better than many seasons beforehand?
With a far more manageable squad size in operation for Rodgers to work with also, then allows himself to be able to get ourselves better prepared for the finer details that will be required for ourselves within our CL campaign?
Most excited for our CL campaign this season, even if the expectations are greater, because we have a much better overall look about ourselves going into this campaign this season imo?
And most pleasing is that the potential of outside distractions that can affect a team, shouldn’t be a problem for ourselves to be trying to deal with, especially from the Hun scum cheerleaders within the Scottish media now?