Kris Commons wants to get Celtic’s season off to a flyer by dumping HJK Helsinki out of the Champions League.
A win over the Finnish champions will ensure a group place in the Europa League at worst with the goal of the Champions League group stages still alive.
Celtic’s unconvincing pre-season form has contrasted to HJK’s eye-catching 9-1 aggregate win over KR of Iceland.
That result has focussed everyone at Celtic’s attention of the threat from the Finns with Commons looking for the season to catch fire on day one.
“At Celtic your first game of the season is the knock-out stage of the Champions League,” Commons explained. “If you’re not quite at the races you find yourself out of the biggest competition in Europe so you need to be out of the gates as quickly as possible.
“You probably need to be where you are in December or January time so everything’s free flowing and great.
“It’s not until you’re in double figures games-wise that you get to that peak and get to a tempo but we don’t get the opportunity to do that. That’s why the manager and coaching staff have been trying to get us as sharp as possible.
“That’s why it has been vital to play teams with really good players, because it will quicken the process of getting us to where we need to be. Everything has been geared up for Wednesday, it’s all been put in place for this game.”
Commons added: “Monday and Tuesday will be more down to working on defending well and scoring the goals we need.
“It’s vital to take a clean sheet over to Helsinki and if we can go there with a couple of goals then it will have been a good day’s work.
“We’re yet to see any footage or anaylsis from the people who have done the work on that side of things.
“Obviously we want to exploit any weaknesses and keep out goal threats. They’re no pushovers and it will be more than a test for us.”
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Apologies Joe, things are a little quiet ahead of the Big Game (commentary in Gaelic 🙁 ). O/T I’m afraid, but just came across this on youtube;
“Glasgow Rangers’ groundbreaking signing.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUXhW3JC9Zw&feature=related
It was made 30yrs ago, Ricki Fultons face is a picture. Just wondering whether from your sides point of view it was “Offensive” or “funny”. Your all very intense on the blog, I’m curious 😉
A simple “Offensive” or “Funny” will do. Please delete afterwards.
[GSW is a sevco fan, tax expert and follow follower of MSM]
It was confirmation that this signing policy was real as everyone in Scotland knew and not being bitter, like some other supporters we could mention, was comical as it made the now defunct football club Rangers fc look like the radical organisation it has always been and always will be.
Thanks jocky, I’ll put that down as a “Funny”. Like I said, your all very “intense”‘ I have friends who are Celtic fans and we poke a bit of fun at each other every now and then.
One neighbour in particular, we watch the European matches on the TV together, he’s been very sympathetic about all this, burst out laughing a few times cause he couldn’t help himself, but at least he made the effort.
[Believe it if you like from a Sevco fan]