Vilanova issues Celtic warning

Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova has warned his squad not to take Celtic lightly.

Vilanova has yet to taste defeat since taking over from Pep Guardiola with the Catalans sitting at the top of La Liga and Group G in the Champions League.

Neil Lennon’s side are an unknown quantity at this level but on the back of their thrilling 3-2 win away to Spartak Moscow Vilanova is wary of tomorrow nights’ visitors.

“Celtic drew at home to Benfica and beat Spartak and that’s a sign they are doing things well,” the Barca boss stated.

“Maybe people didn’t take Celtic seriously at the start of the season, but we do.

“Celtic are very quick and good on the counterattack, so we have to take them seriously in the Champions League.

“There are four games left and anything can happen. We will see which two teams qualify. All the games are difficult and Celtic’s pace and the fact that they have tall players for set pieces are what worries me the most about them.

“I would prefer to win scoring the most possible goals and not conceding any, but when it comes down to it, I just want to win.

“Home games are very important in the Champions League. If we win this one, we will take a huge step forward. Over the years there have been lots of examples of teams who have been written off and were dangerous.

Barca will be without a number of regulars due to injury and suspension including Carlos Puyol, Gerard Pique, Dani Alves, Thiago and Sergio Busquets.

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