CELTIC will extend a warm welcome to Barcelona ahead of tomorrow UEFA Champions League clash but come kick-off Neil Lennon´s men will be gunning for another night of glory in Paradise. The Hoops, of course, stunned the Catalan giants at home last year in the group stage of the competition thanks to goals from Victor Wanyama and Tony Watt. Repeating that fantastic feat will be a tough task for the Scottish champions for, despite the absence of the injured Lionel Messi, Barca remain a fearsome outfit. Full of technically-gifted players like Neymar, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Cesc Fabregas and Pedro, they are one of the favourites to go all the way in the tournament. They are also extremely adept at retaining possession, and the Celtic manager knows his players will have to employ a similar strategy of containment to give themselves a chance of success. "We´re looking forward to the game and obviously we welcome Barcelona here with open arms, and I´m hoping it´s going to be another great occasion," said the Hoops boss. "As regard our tactics, it will be very much, at times, containment, trying to limit Barcelona to as few chances as we possibly can and to maximise the opportunities we might get during the game like we did last year. They are not like any other team really. "Against Milan, we had our fair share of the ball and we had good chances, but Barcelona, in my opinion, are a class above. "That´s not being disrespectful to Milan, but just in the way they pass the ball, create chances and the pace they have in wider areas. They have been consistently the best club side in the world in the past 10 years, although Bayern Munich look to have taken over that mantle. "In terms of our approach to Barcelona, it will be exactly the same. Whether Messi plays or not, they don’t change their system or style of play. "They believe in that 4-3-3 formation. It´s worked very well for them over the years. They don´t really have a proper centre-forward as such and that´s when your centre-halves have to be very concentrated and alert at all times as they have runners coming from wide areas and deep. "When they get the ball in the final third the speed of their passing is phenomenal at times. "You say they have defensive problems with injuries but they are keeping clean sheets – they had a clean sheet against Vallecano, Sociedad and Almeria. "Regardless of the personnel they are defending very well. It does help if you can get the ball off them and you can have a sustained period of pressure. "We will try to exploit any weakness they show on the night. Our players are really looking forward to it. They are very hungry for this game." Unfortunate not to collect any points from their opening group match in Milan, earning some kind of reward against Barcelona would be a massive boost to Celtic´s prospects of qualifying from the group. ´If we don´t prevail in this game and Milan beat Ajax then it´s going to be increasingly difficult," said the manager. "It´s not the end of the world if we don´t win the game. If Ajax and Milan draw then we are still well in the group with the double-header against Ajax and Milan still to come as well. "We are preparing for a very tough game tomorrow night. It would be fantastic if we could get something out of it, but, like we did last year, we never really budgeted for anything against Barcelona in both the games. "If we can get something out of both the games it would be a huge bonus for us going forward in the group." The absence of Messi can only help Celtic´s cause but the manager believes that Paradise is a fitting stage for the best player in the world. "It´s obviously very good news for us as he´s the best player in the world," he added. "However, it´s tinged with sadness as it´s always good to see the best players play here in Glasgow." The Hoops also have injury concerns of their own with Joe Ledley ruled out and Derk Boerrigter a doubt. More positively, James Forrest and Beram Kayal both resumed full training today (Monday). "James Forrest and Beram Kayal both trained today so they will be available," said the Irishman. "Derk Boerrigter didn’t train today so he will be a doubt for tomorrow. "He picked up an injury against Morton and isn’t fully recovered from it yet. It was the remnants for the original injury he picked up a few weeks ago. Joe Ledley is out."~ryan
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 16:52:59 +0000
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