Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Alan Brazil: Celtic won’t suffer a repeat of Barcelona drubbing against Manchester City

Celtic suffered a heavy defeat in Barcelona (David Ramos/Getty Images)
Celtic suffered a heavy defeat in Barcelona (David Ramos/Getty Images)

CELTIC fans don’t have to worry about another Champions League drubbing this week.

Manchester City are currently the best team in England. But they’re not yet as good as Barcelona.

In my opinion, there’s no way they will put five, six or seven past the Scottish Champions at Parkhead on Wednesday.

And that will be really important for Brendan Rodgers.

He doesn’t relish a defeat at any time but this game sees him facing the full glare of English football – the place where he made his reputation as a manager.

I don’t give Celtic a massive chance of beating City but there won’t be a repeat of the 7-0 drubbing they suffered at the Nou Camp.

Brendan Rodgers’ side will need the usual astonishing Champions League atmosphere and also a lot of patience from the supporters.

Celtic fans are steeped in the tradition of their favourites playing attacking football, especially at home.

But against a team like City – who are something special in the forward areas – their best hope is to flood the midfield and produce a really stuffy performance.

If Celtic can contain the opposition through strength in numbers and stop their pattern of play then it could be very interesting.

They might get a thumping down in Manchester but I can’t see it happening in Glasgow.

That’s a huge compliment to the unique setting that is Celtic Park on a European night.

They will be facing a side masterminded by a remarkable figure in Pep Guardiola.

I’ve always been a fan of the Spaniard but it’s fascinating to watch the way he has already transformed some players at the Etihad Stadium.

He is a master tactician and places huge demands on his players.

As soon as his team loses the ball, he wants it back within 15 seconds.

He’s also a realist. I think he knows his squad is still behind Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

Will he rest a couple of players for the trip north? I don’t know. But there is no danger of any complacency from Guardiola.

I’m sure that most football fans in Scotland look at the English Premier League and know it’s much stronger, much faster and slicker than the game they watch every week.

That means the Celtic supporters have to go to this cross-border clash with an open mind about how their team will play.

If they allow creative players like Kevin De Bruyne time on the ball then the home defence will be ripped apart.

The first 25 minutes will be absolutely vital for Celtic.

If they can keep the opposition at bay for that length of time, then who knows what might happen.

Brendan Rodgers can’t belittle his side by saying the financial gulf between their leagues gives them little chance of a victory.

He will have to emphasise it’s a one-off occasion and that Celtic have risen to the challenge many times previously during their history.

It’s the chance for another great European night to enter club folklore.


READ MORE

Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths returns from injury but may have to bide his time

Dates confirmed for Morton v Aberdeen and Rangers v Celtic Betfred League Cup semi-finals