Is the Europa League the unexpected opportunity Celtic needs? This video delves into Celtic's journey, dissecting their performance and exploring whether the Europa League could be a blessing in disguise.
We analyze their tactical approach, player performances, and the overall team dynamic. Discover key insights into how Celtic might leverage this competition for growth and success.
Could this be Celtic's path to redemption and a chance to shine on the European stage? Watch to find out!
00:00Across the city, Celtic have their own off-field issues to deal with, but ahead of another massive Europa League game, fans have been questioning the importance of the Europa League.
00:13Some feel, of course, it's not a competition that Celtic supporters at the start of the year were hoping that they would be in.
00:19But could the Europa League be a blessing in disguise for Brendan Rodgers' side?
00:25How times have changed, of course, as they prepare for their match against Braga at the time of recording.
00:35They started their league phase campaign with a valuable point out in Belgrade against Red Star in arguably one of European football's most hostile atmospheres earlier this month.
00:49That was a solid start, but this is a game against Braga that won't sell out.
00:56It's a competition, of course, that many, as I mentioned, didn't want to be in.
01:01It's, of course, Celtic are currently not scoring the same amount of goals as they have done in previous years.
01:07But barring that, you know, Brendan Rodgers has been relatively pleased with their start to the season, despite the kind of simmering discontent among a sizable chunk of the fan base.
01:19That's unlikely to ease any time soon, of course, in the back of a hugely underwhelming transfer window.
01:26And, of course, it's the Champions League anthem they'd rather be hearing rather than the Europa League one.
01:32But, you know, it's a competition that Celtic must take seriously.
01:37At the end of the day, this is an opportunity whereby they're in a competition that isn't full of European world beaters, if you like.
01:46There's no Real Madrid, PSG, Barcelona in this competition.
01:51This is a real opportunity that Celtic might sense they can get quite far in having failed to kind of seriously go too far in the Europa League in previous years.
02:03But I'm sure supporters had envisaged a run the type of one that Rangers went on en route to the 2022 Europa League final.
02:12I'm sure as they progress throughout the competition and if they do make it through the league phase,
02:20then certainly supporters will start returning in their droves and make Celtic Park that special occasion that we all know it can be on European nights.
02:30Certainly there's a feeling that the kind of short-term pain of missing out on the Champions League could bring longer-term gain for the hoops.
02:39I guess you just have to take a look at some of the Champions League results so far with the likes of Madrid.
02:43As I mentioned, smashing five past Celtics conquerors, Kairat Almaty, who were also pummeled in their first game as well of the competition at Atletico Madrid.
02:55They also took five goals off recent Europa League winners, Eintracht Frankfurt.
02:59So Celtic are certainly in a competition where they'll feel that they're against a level of opposition that they're more than a match for.
03:08And as I said, didn't look out of place in their opening fixture out in the Serbian capital last week.
03:15They created enough chances in that match to win and will certainly take plenty of confidence from a solid point gained on their travels.
03:24Braga, well, there'll be another kind of decent test, but they're no world beaters and they're struggling for form at this moment in time.
03:35But it's certainly not beyond the realms of possibility that Celtic could put together a deep run in this tournament if a couple of key players can maybe nurse their way back to full fitness.
03:45Like it's Alistair Johnson still to return from injury.
03:49So while the Europa League won't be the music to anyone's ears inside the stadium this evening, it's still a competition that Celtic will hope to go far in going forward.
04:03And there's a real possibility that they can put a real stamp and advance to the latter stages of Europe's second tier competition.
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