A lot was made of Celtic’s performances in the Champions League this season.
Despite Celtic’s barren run in Europe in recent years, expectations certainly rose for this campaign because the Champions League format was revamped.
This was supposed to boost and benefit teams like Celtic because you are now playing a lot more teams on your level-playing field, rather than those above your pay grade.
There is no doubt that Brendan Rodgers’ side progressed on the big stage, but it ended in bitter disappointment in Germany’s capital.
Celtic’s draw against Bayern Munich – and aggregate defeat – was difficult to take because that Alphonso Davies stoppage time goal wasn’t deserved.
But the bigger picture needs to be looked at and Alan Shearer did just that.
Alan Shearer backs Celtic to surge forward in the Champions League
The Premier League’s all-time leading goalscorer was in Bavaria to witness Celtic’s performance first-hand and he liked what he saw.
Shearer agreed that the Hoops can ‘hold their heads up high’ and deserved a lot more from the second leg encounter.
And he also wanted to point out that, from here on in, Celtic will ‘definitely compete’ in the Champions League, as he told The Rest Is Football.
“Yeah, (Celtic can hold their heads up high),” agreed Shearer. “I think the way Brendan spoke after the game that he feels they have gone up a level now and that they can certainly compete.
“With the way the format is, they can definitely compete. You would think anyone going to Celtic is in for a really tough game. That sort of suits them in the league phase to get this far.
“I think they have found their feet in the way the format is. I think they are only going to get better as the years go by.”
Shearer lauds Celtic’s actions that ‘quietened’ Bayern Munich crowd
Many were expecting Bayern to secure a comfortable win over the champions of Scotland, especially since they won 2-1 at Celtic Park.
You also need to factor in that Bayern had only been beaten by Real Madrid (twice), Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain on home soil over the last ten years in Europe.
Yet, after just five minutes, Shearer noticed that the Bayern crowd, apart from one stand, were shushed into silence because of how Celtic were playing.
“The atmosphere beforehand, and five minutes before the game, then five minutes into the game, was amazing,” said Shearer.
“But, because of the job Celtic did on Bayern Munich. They actually quietened the crowd down. There was only the end behind one goal that kept on going.
“But, the rest of the crowd, was pretty quiet because of the job Celtic did on them. They didn’t have a lot of possession, but when they did have a lot of possession, they used it really well. Their movement was really great and obviously the chances they created.
“Then they got the goal in the second half. The least they deserved is to go into extra time and see what they could do then.”
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