Arne Engels’ Champions League verdict will have Celtic fans feeling bullish ahead of Dortmund clash

Add as preferred source on Google

Celtic are plotting a route past Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League as Brendan Rodgers’ men look to make a compelling case for progression from the league phase.

Starting as they mean to go on, the Bhoys thumped Slovan Bratislava 5-1 in their opening fixture, adding to their imperious domestic form.

However, the task of facing last season’s Champions League finalists at Signal Iduna Park is one that will be treated with the respect it deserves. Under Nuri Sahin, the hosts possess a lot of talent, with Nico Schlotterbeck, Karim Adeyemi, and Serhou Guirassy the pick of the bunch.

On the contrary, Dortmund showed defensive frailty against Bochum last Friday eventually recovering from a 2-0 deficit to stay in touch with the leading Bundesliga pack after running out 4-2 winners.

Their victory did illustrate signs of peaks and troughs. In his pre-match press conference, Brendan Rodgers vowed that Celtic can ‘really hurt’ Dortmund with the speed in their forward line, which will excite supporters.

The Irishman isn’t the only one harbouring cautious optimism ahead of the tie, with Arne Engels also laying his own hopes of a special night in Germany on the table.

Arne Engels’ Champions League verdict will excite Celtic fans

Speaking ahead of the clash, Engels has signalled that Celtic hold ‘belief’ over going into the battle at Signal Iduna Park and emerging with a result. The Belgium international indicated that if his side didn’t embody that mindset, there would be no point in turning up.

He stated [Celtic FC]: “It’s good that I know the stadium, but we just need to perform and look to ourselves. We are doing really good at the moment. We stick to the basics, we are in a good mood and we want to do the same thing tomorrow. If you don’t have the belief then just don’t come here.

“We want to come here and win, you always have to have this kind of mindset. They are a really good team, they are always a good team to play against. They are a strong opponent, but we are also in a good way, so it’s going to be good.”

Later, he continued: “Everybody is really focused on their jobs and that’s what makes us really strong as a team. Every day we are setting the standards for ourselves and doing a really good job there, so it’s up to us now to show it like we do every week.

“We want to perform and do our best, that’s what we have been doing so far and we just want to perform at our best. Everybody will be there and everybody needs to be sharp.”

The expectation on Arne Engels’ shoulders at Celtic

With Engels being Celtic’s record buy at £11 million, it is fair to say there is a weight of expectation on his shoulders to produce in green and white.

Observing his progress so far, you would back him to deliver when expected. His first five games have yielded two goals and two assists, including a penalty and a perfect delivery for Liam Scales against Slovan Bratislava in Europe’s premier competition.

Sampling some of the fixtures to come seen above, back-to-back Champions League matches against Dortmund and Atalanta will be where he is primarily judged, alongside being charged with leading from the front in Celtic’s hunt for domestic silverware.

At 21, Engels has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders. Oozing class so far, you get the impression he will continue to be a pillar of strength under Rodgers.