Former Celtic striker Charlie Nicholas has given his prediction for the Hoops’ upcoming Europa League match against Rennes on Thursday.
Nicholas, a Celtic hero as a player who helped the Hoops win multiple trophies, believes that his former side will do enough to pick up the three points on the night.
However, he does not expect it to be an easy game for the Hoops.
“Celtic have done a great job. I didn’t expect them to get the win at Lazio. It was a decent scalp and it took them long enough to get a scalp like that away from home” he said looking at Celtic’s Europa League campaign so far, as reported by Sky Sports.
He then moved on to how he felt the match against Rennes would go.
“A hard-working night”
“I see them winning but it will be a tough one – it is a hard-working night but it is more about game time for some fringe players” he concluded, predicting a 1-0 win for the Hoops.
Most Celtic fans would no doubt be satisfied with that outcome. It would mean that the Hoops have their highest ever points total for a Champions League/Europa League group stage. It could also guarantee Celtic top spot in the group, depending on the outcome of the Lazio-Cluj game.
Opponents are already eliminated
Hopefully the victory is more comfortable than Nicholas suggests. Rennes have nothing to play for, as they have already been eliminated from the group stages.
However, their pride will no doubt drive them on to put in a good performance at Celtic Park. Still, any win will do for the Hoops. Celtic are on an eight game winning streak, which will gave the team plenty of confidence. They will not want that to come to an end ahead of some big matches in the weeks to come.
Celtic’s form should give them the advantage over Rennes, but as Nicholas says, the team will have to work hard to secure the victory.
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