Neil Lennon reckons that one good thing has come from Celtic’s Europa League loss to Copenhagen – the fact his players will be able to get a bit more rest.
The Hoops would have desperately hoped to be in last 16 action this coming Thursday night, but our 3-1 defeat to the Danes at Celtic Park ended those hopes.
Lennon’s men will instead have a full week to prepare for the derby clash at Ibrox next Sunday, and the Northern Irishman says that’s at least one positive thing.
“Sometimes you can be in a match rhythm of three games in a week and it can be a bit disruptive,” Lennon told the Daily Record after yesterday’s win.
“If there’s any consolation of not being in Europe it’s that the players get a bit more rest. It’s been a heavy schedule.
“I was bitterly disappointed to go out of Europe. We felt we could have made a decent fist of it. But we’ve bounced back quite well.
“We played really well in midweek with real aggression and intensity.
“I’m looking for a bit more of that next weekend.”
Lennon has a chance to right some wrongs from Copenhagen loss
Going out of Europe was especially painful, given the way the tie unfolded after starting so well.
Nothing is likely to completely numb that pain, but a win at Ibrox on Sunday may allow a lot of people to move on.
Having the week off to prepare for the fixture must be seen as a real boost to our chances of getting a result.
Rangers will face a testing clash against Bayer Leverkusen just two and a half days prior to the fixture, and that must surely be likely to take something out of the energy reserves they have.
Meanwhile, our players can sit at home and watch the game on the telly – resting their legs and preparing for what is to come.
Of course they’d rather be playing. And we’d rather be watching them play.
But it is what it is. We’ve got a chance to rub salt into the wounds of our rivals next weekend.
It couldn’t be set up better.
How do you see next weekend’s derby at Ibrox going? Let us know below and join the chat on our newly launched fans discussion forum…
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