Rodgers delighted by Celtic progress
Britain Football Soccer - Celtic v FC Barcelona - UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Group C - Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland - 23/11/16 Barcelona's Luis Suarez and Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers after the game Action Images via Reuters / Lee Smith Livepic EDITORIAL USE ONLY.
Brendan Rodgers has warned Astana that the Celtic team they will face tomorrow are unrecognisable from the side they met a year ago.
Last season Rodgers took his side to Kazakhstan still nursing the wounds of a 1-0 defeat away to Lincoln Red Imps.
With Erik Sviatchenko adding to the injured list Eoghan O’Connell and Efe Ambrose were brought together as an unlikely central defensive partnership.
A 1-1 draw with Astana was greeted with joy and relief before a last minute penalty from Moussa Dembele earned Celtic a Play Off place where they overcame Hapoel Beer Sheva.
This time around a 5-0 first leg win has turned the return match into a virtual formality with Rodgers delighted by the way that his side has evolved over the last year.
???? BR: “Our possession is at a much higher level. We can defend better with the ball and have longer periods with it in the opponent’s half.”
— Celtic Football Club (@celticfc) August 21, 2017
???? BR: “The team is defending well as a team, very aggressively and strong, but we’re also attacking with creativity and speed.” #UCL
— Celtic Football Club (@celticfc) August 21, 2017
???? BR: “It’s huge credit to the players and how they’ve coped and had that ability to stay calm over the course of this qualification phase.”
— Celtic Football Club (@celticfc) August 21, 2017
Tomorrow’s match kicks off at 9.30pm local time but Celtic have stuck to BST throughout the trip which allows them to prepare for a 4.30pm kick off.