Celtic are pushing for a seat at the table of Europe’s elite
More than a European knock-out match, more than a visit from eight time European champions or a side with a combined 935 international caps featuring, the 90 minutes at the rip-roaring Celtic Park was a test. A test to see if Celtic can dine at the same table as the Munich’s and Barcelona’s of Europe. There is no doubt Celtic want to be among Europe’s elite, however ludicrous that might sound given that they had previously failed to make the knock-out rounds of the competition since 2013. But, such is the ambition of manager Brendan Rodgers, who believes his side belong with the continental big boys who can afford the luxury of splurging Celtic’s entire (almost always unspent) kitty on one player. Within 90 seconds played it looked as though had blown a hole through Vincent Kompany’s no doubt meticulous notes for the evening, but it proved to be just a shot across the bow as Adam Idah was adjudged to have interfered with Manuel Neuer’s vision as Nicolas Kuhn’s effort split through the Munich defences. Then came time for the home side to answer the question on everyone’s mind. Punters and fans alike knew they could score, the mauling of RB Leipzig, one of the three Bundesliga sides they have now faced, was clear as day. Instead people wondered, will Rodgers stick to his guns, play out from the back and launch wild attacks in the face of opposition even greater than the Dortmund side that had delivered that 7-1 shellacking in October. In the days that followed right up until this fixture, the Northern Irishman has never wavered from his beliefs, even when conceding goals like they did as Dane Murray saw his pocket picked in the loss to Aston Villa. Granted, there were nervy moments as Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty attempted to bypass not two or three but four Bayern attackers hounding them at the scent of slightest whiff of doubt but they persevered with the plan. With each passing wave of attack, every quick one-two and dazzling touch from the effervescent Jamal Musiala, Celtic’s players must have felt like they were up agains the final boss before they had even reached the Quarter-finals. Such is the format that has perhaps put a spanner in the works of the wannabe ‘Super League’ teams, who have haggled and fought for the opportunity to spend as few nights as possible in stadiums like Celtic Park. Although in their defence Bayern, having never supported the project, have found themselves in the crossfires as innocent bystanders. Not that there was anything innocent about the way Michael Olise almost tore a hole in Kasper Schmeichel’s net with a stunning effort that had Greg Taylor looking crestfallen before the ball had even left the Frenchman’s foot with mere minutes left til the break. Rather, the guilt lies with Celtic’s naivety at the back. After watching an inexplicably unmarked Harry Kane (yes the same Harry Kane who 57 goals in 51 Bundesliga appearances) at the back-post head a whipped ball from a corner into the side netting, allowed the striker to find himself without a buddy in the 49th minute. This time Kane would not miss. The second goal seemed a death knell for the hosts. If they were two down at home, it seemed impossible to conceive of a day to turn that around in Munich next week. Yet his was not the Celtic side of that Dortmund defeat, it wasn’t even the same as last week as they continue to evolve and learn with each passing week. Not even the introduction of Kinglsey Coman, Serge Gnabry or World Cup winners Thomas Muller could tuck the Glasgow side away. Down but not out, changes were made and this time it was Bayern who felt the pressure. Dayot Upamecano perhaps fortunate to not give away a penalty after stamping on Arne Engels’ foot in the box, his touch of the ball beforehand his only salvation. ‘Live by the corner, die by the corner’ as the age old adage probably goes. Kompany’s eyes burned seeing Daizen Maeda nick an all important deficit scythe with a point blank header after Yang Hyun-Jun had shanked his shot in the 79th minute. Celtic’s improvement under Rodgers has been gradual, seeped with fragments of information from each game. Maeda however, is on a gradient of his own as his tally for the season is already double his previous best of 11 from 2022-23. It proved no more than a consolation but that characterisation does disservice to its significance. Celtic have shown they are no minnows in the competition whose trophy still has their name etched on. Now, they must travel to the heartland of German football for an even greater test, one without the comforts of home that even Kompany himself could only help but admire how it ‘transcends performance’. This result showed they could sit at the table with the Champions League elite. Next week, we will find out if they take the food right off their plates.
Engels says his side have shown they can “match Bayern”
Celtic midfielder Arne Engels says his side have shown they can match Bayern Munich and must believe they can do so again in the away leg of their Champions League tie next Tuesday. “There are a lot of positive points. We just need to keep on believing in ourselves. We’re still in the game and that was the aim. “We have shown we can match Bayern and it’s up to us now to go there and believe we can do something. We don’t need to change a lot. “I think we are improving in every aspect. We can be compact and you saw in the last 20 minutes that we really can hurt them.” Engels thought he might have had the opportunity to score from the penalty spot when he was challenged by Bayern defender Dayot Upamecano. No foul was awarded on the field and, although referee Jesus Gil Manzano was called to the monitor to review his decision, he stuck with his original ruling. “I felt something on my foot and I thought it was a penalty, but I heard from the guys that he slightly touched it with his toe,” Engels said. “I think if the referee needs to go to the screen maybe it would have been a penalty, but it wasn’t. So we had to keep on going.”