Manager: It's an exciting prospect to take on one of Europe's top teams

Celtic F.C.

·31 janvier 2025

Manager: It's an exciting prospect to take on one of Europe's top teams

Brendan Rodgers has been delighted with the progress his squad has made on the European stage this season, and he’s now relishing the next challenge for his team – a UEFA Champions League knockout play-off clash with Bayern Munich.

The mouthwatering tie against the six times winner of the European Cup/UEFA Champions League is a reward for an impressive league phase campaign which saw the Hoops win three and draw three of their eight fixtures against some top-class opponents.

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And the Celtic manager is looking forward to the contests against Vincent Kompany’s side, who are currently six points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.

Speaking after the draw, Brendan Rodgers said: “It’s brilliant. We’ve earned to get to the play-off stage.

“The players have been outstanding over the eight games and that qualifies us to play one of these top teams so we’ll look forward to that when it comes.

“We’ve played Bayern Munich before in my time (2017). We had a really good game at home, played very well and could have got something from the game.

'We’re really excited by the opportunity and we will give everything we can over the course of the two legs.'

“We have improved. The key message for me this season, and what we wanted to see, was progress and there’s no doubt that the team has progressed over the course of the competition.

“Over the course of the eight games, we’ve shown clear progression, both in our football and our mentality and our attitude, because being successful at that level is not just about ability.

“It’s about attitude and mentality, and the players have shown that and now we’ll need to show that again going into this next level.”