Celtic and Aston Villa’s stars were told to “enjoy the occasion” when the two square off next week in Champions League action.
That, however, may no longer be a possibility at Villa Park.
Celts know a win tonight over Young Boys at Parkhead will put them in the driving seat to make the knockout playoff spots which would suit manager Brendan Rodgers.
Callum McGregor also does not want Celtic to be a “nearly team” so three points this evening would be vital in what Chris Sutton described as the “biggest game” in a long time for the Hoops.
Before last night’s defeat at AS Monaco, former Villa and Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott seemingly expected the Premier League club to have few problems in France.
Joleon Lescott told Celtic and Aston Villa to ‘enjoy’ the clash
The 42-year-old told TNT Sports before kick-off that he felt his old side could consolidate their spot among the guaranteed qualifiers with points in Monaco.
Then they would be able to “enjoy” the Battle of Britain against Scotland‘s giants down south.
Lescott had said: “I’m sure that is the incentive for all the top eight teams – to really cement their place in the knockout stages.
| Aston Villa Champions League table position | Celtic Champions League table position |
| 6. Bayer Leverkusen – 13 points | 20. Feyenoord – 10 points |
| 7. Inter – 13 points | 21. VFB Stuttgart – 10 points |
| 8. ASTON VILLA – 13 points | 22. Real Madrid – 9 points |
| 9. Brest – 13 points | 23. CELTIC – 9 points |
| 10. Monaco – 13 points | 24. Man City – 8 points |
| 11. LOSC – 13 points | 25. Dinamo – 8 points |
“And then they can just enjoy the Celtic occasion more than having the pressure of having to win and get points.”
It did not go to plan for the Birmingham outfit, however, and Emery was furious at full-time with his flops.
It was a result and performance which certainly did not fill the fanbase with much confidence as they had their say on the outing.
Celtic could force Villa to surrender their knockout spot
Some Villa fans showed their nerves about facing Celtic next week with not everyone optimistic about a result.
Their loss leaves them sitting eighth in the competition with just the one fixture left.
Brest, Bayern Munich and AC Milan could all go ahead of the Villans should they win their games this evening and that means the Celtic clash next week becomes even more important.
Emery – the European football master – had already issued a warning to Rodgers and insisted even before last night’s result that Villa would be giving their all to take the points.
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