THE plane Celtic chartered to and from Astana is to be used by non-other than the Rolling Stones next month as they embark on what must be their millionth world tour.
It would be pushing it to suggest Scott Brown and the rest partied like Mick and Keef did back in the day in the wake of their qualification to the Champions League but the atmosphere up the front where the players and coaches sat was pretty jubilant.
Six games, six very different games as well, were negotiated in the qualifiers and as Brendan Rodgers said only 25 minutes, at the start of the second half on Tuesday night, caused Celtic any real trouble.
Although it did feel like an hour at the time.
“You all see how hard it is to qualify,” said Rodgers when he had a bit of time to reflect on what his team had just done. “Not many people know of Astana but they have invested a lot of money and going there can be difficult in terms of travel.
“Our club hadn’t been in the Champions league for a while. We found a way last year and we found a better way this year. And there has been an improvement.
“The money we get is also huge for the Scottish game as it goes into the development of youth players. Commercially it’s great for the area too. Scotland is not the richest country so this brings different revenue streams into the country. It’s another great step for us in our project.”
Celtic, of course, aren’t perfect. Patrick Roberts will be a great addition and there are players to come back from injury – losing three centre-halves at the same time is bad luck – but Rodgers will need to strengthen and South African defender Rivaldo Coetzee is a good start.
They won’t be feared by anyone but will be one of those in Pot Four which most in two and three would like to avoid. Considering where they were 18 months ago, it’s a big improvement.
What the match in Astana proved was that Celtic are terrific going forward, they missed some amount of chances, but when an opponent sense frailty at the back, the vulnerability is clear.
So, how well can Celtic expect to get on?
Europe after Christmas is the goal and third place in the group guarantees that because those teams drop into the Europa League knock-out stages.
The best team in Scotland will always find it difficult against the third best team in the biggest countries but that’s not to say that if the draw goes their way, not that it could ever be easy, Celtic if they can keep everyone fit would have a chance of a top two position, although you would get long odds on that.
“There are frailties in every team,” said Rodgers. “You can shine a torch into every single side and pick up issues, but we’ve come through this qualification well.
“We know that we need that extra bit of quality but I still want to work with these players to make them better. We have young players and at times when the momentum goes from you it can all become a bit of a blur.
“We lost a game the other night and I wanted the performance to be better. We started well and had good control, but it’s a learning night for our team exposed to that sort of pressure. I’m very proud.”
And, so, who does Rodgers fancy?
“You know when you come into this level that no matter who you get it will be fantastic,” he said.
“We can sit back with pride on Thursday and be happy that we’re qualified and Celtic’s name is in with the elite clubs at Champions league level.
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