Josip Juranovic, compatriot and national teammate of Luka Modric, has revealed that the Real Madrid star was left impressed by Celtic during the Champions League encounter last week.
Modric was the star performer in the 3-0 Celtic defeat, showing his class to propel the Spaniards to a victory despite a strong start from the Bhoys.
The Celtic full-back spoke to the Croatian after the match, relaying to The Sunday Post [11/09 print edition, page 77]: “We have had a really good start to the season, and our confidence is high. I spoke with Luka Modric after the game, and he thought we were good, especially in the first half, and that we need to continue playing that way. I think if we can do that, we can take some points in this group and push for second place.
“What can I say about Luka? He is the captain of Croatia, my national team, a really good person and, as you saw last Tuesday, a really good player.
“This is the standard of the Champions League, but if we can continue like we did early on against Real, we can take some points. All the teams are good, but we do not need to be scared because we are good, too. That is why we are involved.”
Celtic now have another big opportunity to show off what they’re all about on the grandest European football stage this Wednesday with a trip to Warsaw, playing Shakhtar Donetsk.
There will be less glitz, glamour and noise compared to matchday 1, but the three points are just as valuable against the Ukrainians as the European champions.
If the Bhoys can reach the same standards on the road that we witnessed against Modric and company, there’s no reason to think we can’t pick up a positive result.
In other news, Paul Lambert’s high praise for top Celtic performer vs Real Madrid.
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