Kasper Schmeichel has played in some of football’s biggest stadiums, but the former Celtic goalkeeper still believes few can match the intensity of a Champions League night at Parkhead.
His latest comments revealed just how stunned visiting players are when they experience the atmosphere for themselves.
The veteran goalkeeper revealed that it was often the reaction of opposition players, rather than Celtic fans, that showed him just how special the atmosphere really is.
And it is this reaction that will be so important to the club next season.
Does Celtic Park need the Green Brigade to be at its best?
Celtic Park leaves Champions League visitors stunned
Schmeichel has played across England, Europe and international football, which makes his assessment particularly powerful.
Reflecting on Champions League nights in Glasgow, he told Four Four Two, “It’s everything about the place, driving up to the stadium, this monumental stadium, you see the (Jock Stein) statue, you walk in, all the pictures, all the history of the club everywhere.
“You go in the dressing room and it’s got a lovely blend of refurbs but still a lot of the old school stuff there. You walk through the tunnel, there’s all the plaques and all the names, and then being on the pitch and the noise.
“It’s deafening. It’s just the passion. All of it just grips you. In terms of actual intensity, I’d struggle to find anywhere louder.
“One of my favourite things always was Champions League games, when the song starts, then this massive roar. I always used to love when we lined up to look at the opposition. See their faces. They’re like, ‘wow, this is incredible’.
“Any opposition player you may have known from the national team or somewhere else and you’re talking after the game, in the tunnel, in the changing room areas, they’re all like, ‘wow, this is immense’.”
That is not a view coming from a supporter looking to praise his own club. It is an observation from a player who has spent his career competing at the highest level and witnessing how elite opponents react when they experience Celtic Park first-hand.
The strongest endorsement comes from Celtic’s opponents
The most telling part of Schmeichel’s story is that visiting players were still left amazed by the intensity of the occasion.
Schmeichel says many opponents reacted with genuine surprise after experiencing a Champions League night at Celtic Park. Their response is perhaps the strongest endorsement Parkhead can receive.
For all the discussion around tactics, budgets and squad quality, Celtic Park remains one of Celtic’s greatest assets.
Schmeichel’s account is a reminder that some advantages cannot be measured on a spreadsheet, but they can certainly be felt when the Champions League lights come on.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
