Jens Berthel Askou’s half-time team talk centred around the Celtic Park crowd on Saturday.
The Motherwell boss had been pegged back from one goal up, as a sloppy pass under pressure led to Yang Hyun-Jun’s equaliser after Elijah Just opened the scoring.
In the end, Martin O’Neill’s men took advantage of Emmanuel Longelo’s red card to secure a vital 3-1 win, dealing a near-fatal blow to the Steelmen’s hopes of a late title push.
Askou’s side had played some bold football in the first-half, and the visiting boss feels like it left an impact on the crowd at Celtic Park.
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Motherwell boss Jens Berthel Askou’s half-time team talk vs Celtic
Per The Athletic’s access-all-areas account of the match, Askou said at the interval: “There is only one reason for the crowd to be on their side, and it is that they scored a goal.
“They were all over them until they got a moment of luck. It doesn’t matter, keep going because we will create chances out there in the second half.
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“We have so much control of this game now. Don’t be intimidated by the crowd trying to help them get back in the game.
“Be brave and run some long attacks out there, as they will hate it. We are the ones who decide if we lose control or not.”
It’s an interesting insight into how the Parkhead crowd – typically used as a weapon in Celtic’s favour – is something that opposing managers look to use in their favour.
Readers who were in attendance in Motherwell’s last visit to the Hoops, a 3-2 win for Celtic under Brendan Rodgers, may remember the crowd getting audibly disgruntled at the team’s inability to cope with the visitors in the first half.
That game was won by a late diving header by Daizen Maeda, who also played a leading role for the Celts this time around, albeit without scoring.
Askou will have taken confidence from his side’s dismantling of Wilfried Nancy’s Celtic in December, though this game was always going to be a different kettle of fish.
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Jens Berthel Askou’s team talk before Celtic clash
Askou was in a similarly confident voice before the game, telling his players: “We all know that we are more than capable of coming here and outperforming this team.
“All you need to do is be who you are and do what you do.
“You don’t need to invent anything, you don’t need to dig deep or find something you haven’t found before. Just go out and give yourself and each other the opportunity.
“We’ve learned our lessons and improved our skill set along the way. Today we’re not first-year students anymore.
“Today is a celebration of how far we have come. So I want you to go out and enjoy it. Go out and have a party out there. Are you ready, boys?”
Spoiler: they weren’t.
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