Celts need to stop firing European blanks blasts Derk

Derk Boerrigter knows exactly how brutal the Champions League can be on its contestants.

Last season Celtic’s Dutch winger was part of the Ajax side which consigned Manchester City to bottom place in their group.

Their final total of three points was the lowest ever by an English side at the stage, a major embarrassment for a squad assembled at huge cost.

A year on, City have bounced back and, with 12 points from five games, are poised to reach the last 16 of the competition.

And while Celtic operate on a different level financially, 27-year-old Boerrigter hopes it will be a similar story for his new employers.

“It was a disappointing night, not just for me, but for the whole team, and the whole club,” he said.

“Reaching the Group in the first place was great of course you always want more.

“But then you play against teams who are much better than Shakhter Karagandy (one of the teams the Hoops dispatched in the qualifiers).

“Although we wanted so much to win, it just didn’t happen.”

The Hoops crashed to Milan 3-0 in midweek in a game strongly reminiscent of last season’s loss to Juventus, again at Celtic Park.

It was a display scarred by some startlingly bad defending but Boerrigter reckons the cause of their problems lies further up the field.

“I think for a few games of this campaign we have actually played pretty well as a team,” he said. “But the important thing is that you need to score.

“If you take the Milan game, for example, we created a lot of chances.

“I think we had something like 20 shots but only four of them were on target. That is something we need to work on.

“Milan got a few chances from set-pieces and scored immediately which was harsh on us.

“Virgil (Van Dijk) got a great opportunity to make it 1-1 which would have been a whole different game. Instead, their goalkeeper made an amazing save.

“So that was a shame for us. As the manager said, it was a disappointing night. We wanted to win but it just didn’t happen.

“Now it is almost over for us and it feels terrible. This is not what I expected to feel.”

Almost over, but not quite.

Celtic finish their European campaign for the season with a trip to Barcelona on Wednesday week.

“We have nothing to lose in the Nou Camp now, so let’s go there try to play a very good game,” said the Dutchman.

“You need to keep your head up high because there are more games to come in the league and also in the Cup.

“Let’s see what the result can be.

“Ajax won which was pretty good for them. Maybe Barcelona are resting players now!

After taking their final bow in Europe for this season at the Nou Camp, Derk and his team-mates will turn their attention to domestic duties.

But will there be much for The Bhoys to play? The Dutchman is in no doubt.

“I am motivated every week,” he insisted. “I want to play every game, and be part of victories every week. So that is fine by me.”

“Hopefully the second half of the season will be different from the first for me. I look forward to it.

“I am happy that I made my first 90 minutes for a long while and hopefully there will be more of that to come.”