Celtic will be looking to continue their strong start in the Champions League on Wednesday night when they host Club Brugge.
Put aside that one nightmare evening in Dortmund, then fans are pretty pleased with what they have seen from their side.
Celtic’s win over RB Leipzig last time out was one of the best performances you will see from the champions in Europe.
It was a sign that the Bhoys are making progress under Brendan Rodgers, but now they face a tricky home test against Club Brugge.
Boyhood Celtic fan John McGinn has already faced the Belgian club – Brugge ended Aston Villa’s 100% start in the Champions League by beating them 1-0 before the international break.
It needs to be noted that Club Brugge were awarded a very odd penalty during the game, after a Tyrone Mings handball, and they won that contest by that single goal.
The advantage Celtic have here is that they are at home and they will feel they can beat absolutely anyone under the lights of the Parkhead crowd.
John McGinn backs Celtic to be ‘too strong’ for Club Brugge
McGinn played around an hour against the Belgian side last month, so he is best placed to tell Celtic what to expect.
Yes, Brugge might set up differently because Celtic press much higher up than Villa and they have the advantage of being at home this time.
But the Villa skipper did note that Brugge are ‘really organised’ and their threats are Christos Tzolis on the flanks, their ‘old fashioned’ striker Ferran Jutgla and their young centre-back Joel Ordonez.
“It was a tough game actually,” said McGinn about facing Brugge. “They had a player, who used to be at Norwich, Tzolis, the left winger, he caused us a lot of problems.
“They had a striker, who was really old-fashioned (Ferran Jutgla). Robust. He had his shorts tucked up right to his chest. He actually looked like a junior striker. But he was one of the best players on the park. He was really good. They were really organised. We couldn’t really break them down. They let us have a lot of the ball and then they broke fast. They had a really good right centre-back (Joel Ordonez). He was excellent. Probably one of the best players on the park.
“But, at home, I think Celtic will be too strong for them. I watched the game against Leipzig and if they play anywhere like that on the night, then I am sure they won’t have any issues and I think that goes for Young Boys as well.”
What Brendan Rodgers has said about Club Brugge
There is a reason why the Champions League is one of the most difficult competitions in the world and Celtic need to be at it here.
This could prove to be far more difficult than the Leipzig game – even though they are supposed to be the better side – because that’s the nature of the beast.
The Celtic manager himself is making sure his players have their feet on the ground and he hailed the opposition’s ‘fantastic players’ ahead of the match, as posted by BBC Sport.
“Teams like Club Brugge are not teams that are probably spoken about a lot, maybe in the same echelons of some of these other big names,” the Northern Irishman said.
“But these are teams that you cannot underestimate. They’re very experienced at the level. They’ve got some fantastic players, a very good coach who’s stepped up and taken them and works them very, very well. So we have to be mindful of that. Every game is a very, very tough game and this game will be another big examination for us.”
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