charli enicholas
I just can't
see Ajax
coming
here and
scoring
three goals
tonight.
Not many
teams will
McCLUSKEY MAGIC
Celtic players celebrate George
McCluskeys winner in the 2-1
second-leg victory,' over Ajax
in Amsterdam during 1982
AN invitation to dine at the top
table of Europe's elite clubs will
arrive tomorrow morning if Celtic
can successfully complete the job
they started with such ruthless zeal
in Amsterdam two weeks ago.
A feast óf football riches is the
reward awaiting Martin O'Neill's side
if they can negotiate their way into the
lucrative Champions League group
stages where the top names in Europe
are waiting.
Tonight could well prove to be the
gateway into football's most demanding
club competition, and certainly former
Celt Charlie Nicholas is confident that
the Hoops will make it into the group
stages for the first time in their history.
"I can't see Ajax coming to Celtic
Park and scoring three goals," admitted
Nicholas. "In fact I can't see many teams
coming here and scoring that amount
of goals.
"I've got no doubts that Celtic will
go into the group stages with some of
the real big names, and while they
might not progress any further than that
I think they will learn so much from
just being involved in the competition."
Nicholas was part of the 1982 Celtic
side who knocked out Ajax in a 4-3
aggregate thriller, and he admitted that
as soon as Celtic were paired with the
Dutch side a flood of memories came
rushing back.
"Even just the build-up to the match
brought a lot of pleasant memories
back," he said. "However, I think that,
overall, the game I was involved in back
in 1982 and the game we saw two
weeks ago were slightly different.
"Our game in Amsterdam was the
second leg and a game won with a late
goal, and it was a real hard graft with a
lot of pressure, whereas the performance
that we saw from Celtic just a couple of
weeks ago was absolutely awesome.
"I think it was one of the best results
Celtic have had in Europe for years.The
Sporting Lisbon result was fantastic, but
the Ajax game was superb. I know the
Dutch side didn't play particularly well
and are a young team, but the critics can
say what they like; Celtic's performance
was impressive and I know how good it
feels to take a scalp like that.
"There is still work to do in order to
re-establish Celtic's position as one of
the leading performers in Europe, but
the signals are there that they have what
it takes to start learning and improving."
Celtic have started the new season
exactly the same way as they rounded
off the last one, and TV pundit
Nicholas revealed that he has been
impressed with the way Martin
O'Neill's side have gone about their
business of picking up maximum points.
However, while he feels they are
flexing their muscles in the SPL, he is
aware that the Champions League will
provide new tests and lessons that the
Hoops will have to heed.
Revealed Nicholas: "While I think
there is still work to be done, the
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