Borussia Dortmund undoubtedly taught Celtic their harshest lesson of the season so far with Tuesday night’s 7-1 thrashing in the Champions League.
Dortmund were relentless with their deluge of goals against the Bhoys, punishing individual errors and collective underperformance on the big European stage.
Celtic had won all nine of their matches prior to the trip to Germany. It was only lower-league side Falkirk that gave Brendan Rodgers’ side a fright, and the Championship side eventually succumbed to a 5-2 defeat after taking the lead twice in the Scottish League Cup tie.
Their manager, John McGlynn, set the Bairns up with a mentality and intent you rarely see from other Scottish sides at Celtic Park, which was commended by supporters and pundits at the time.
McGlynn will have good insight into how things work at Celtic, having previously worked as an opposition analyst under Rodgers at Lennoxtown.
He knows how the Bhoys boss conducts business after a demoralising European defeat.
McGlynn tips Celtic to come out swinging vs Ross County
Asked about what he witnessed in Tuesday night’s match at Signal Iduna Park, McGlynn said [Falkirk Herald]: “Celtic went into the Dortmund game in great form. They had played really, really well all season.
“Through pre-season, they beat Chelsea and Man City and had beaten everyone domestically. Yes, we put up a good show against Celtic recently, but then they go out and score six against St Johnstone.
“So I think everyone thought Celtic were ready to play Dortmund. But they made errors, and no matter who you are, if you make errors, you get punished at a higher level. Unfortunately Celtic continued to make errors and they have openly said it hurt them, of course it did.
“Dortmund were Champions League finalists. You are going up against top dogs, and unfortunately, Celtic were severely punished. They are a very proud football club and it’s not a result they’ll look back at with any fondness.
“They will be licking their wounds, but they’ll certainly probably come out fighting this weekend. That’s the way it works. You take it on the chin, and you move on.”
No room for Celtic slip-up in Dingwall
With Aberdeen starting the Scottish Premiership so strongly, also winning all their matches, Celtic don’t have the room to drop points without consequence at the top of the table.
After weeks of adulation, we now need to see the squad’s fighting spirit and witness a big response against Ross County on Sunday.
This will be a test of the unity and character within Rodgers’ group. There’s no reason to doubt they will bounce back with a win.
That togetherness has been a real strength of the squad over the last 12 months. They’ve come through sharp criticism before to succeed. Let’s see some of that this weekend.
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