Liam Scales has jumped from bit-part Celtic player to becoming a stalwart, embodying every aspect of his rise during the Bhoys’ Champions League draw against Atalanta on Wednesday.
The Irishman was immense in central defence alongside Auston Trusty, with both conspiring to defy the Serie A outfit despite their 22 attempts on goal during proceedings.
Deservedly, Brendan Rodgers’ pragmatic approach against Atalanta paid off despite many questioning his side’s organisational qualities in the lead-up to the tie, off-set by the Hoops’ heavy Champions League defeat in Dortmund on matchday two.
Leaving Celtic on four points from their opening three matches in the competition, there is optimism that progression to the knockout playoff phase could be on the cards, factoring in their remaining fixtures.
Now, Liam Scales has laid out his verdict on the Bhoys’ chances of making history, alongside reserving special praise for one teammate in particular.
Liam Scales on Celtic result against Atalanta and Auston Trusty
Reflecting on a monumental night, Scales attributed Celtic’s result against Atalanta to his side’s unrelenting commitment to the cause.
He stated: “It was a brilliant point, we defended really well. We wanted to bounce back from the Dortmund game and we did that. I think as a group, to put in a performance like that, it’s great for our confidence and it shows we can come away from home and pick up points. Hopefully, it adds towards the tally that we need to go on and do well in this tournament.
“We knew that we were playing against a good team and they were going to move the ball, so we had to move with that in shifts and cover all of our spaces.
“We were never going to get a result without running as hard as we possibly could and we did that. That’s key for us, working hard and working harder than the opponent, that’s what we try and do.”
Later, he singled out Auston Trusty’s Celtic display against Atalanta, adding: “He was brilliant, every ball that came in the box he seemed to put his head on it. He was flying and it was just a top-class old-school defensive performance from him, he was brilliant. Can’t fault him.”
Scales ‘optimistic’ that Celtic can make Champions League waves
Continuing on, Scales added on Celtic’s potential to prolong their stay in the Champions League: “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, we want to take it game by game, but we want to pick up as many points as we can and we know we have home games coming up that hopefully we can do that in, we’ve shown now that we can do it on the road as well.
“We’re optimistic but we don’t want to be too over the top, we need to stay grounded and take it game-by-game.”
Ultimately, there are still five difficult clashes to come for the Bhoys in the league phase, starting with a tussle against Bundesliga high-flyers RB Leipzig on matchday four.
Following that, a trio of ties against Club Brugge, Dinamo Zagreb and Young Boys is then capped with a trip to face Aston Villa in the West Midlands. One suspects Rodgers will fancy his chances of making history the way things are standing.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
