Luis Enrique expects to see a battling Celtic side, as opposed to the one which collapsed at Camp Nou in September.
Barcelona suffered a setback in La Liga during the weekend and will be looking to bounce back with a win in the Champions League as three points would see the Blaugrana secure safe passage into the knockout stages. Aside from one sub-par half against Manchester City, Barça have dominated this group, but not everything is coming up roses for Luis Enrique’s men. Critics are becoming louder in voicing concerns that the team doesn’t have a true identity under Enrique and any further setback will pour significant pressure on his shoulders.
Celtic on the other hand are cruising to another title in domestic Championship, while their continental campaign is far from impressive. After being humbled by Barcelona in Group C opener,
the Scottish champions have collected two points from next three fixtures and need a win in their final two matches to have a chance of European football after Christmas. Brendan Rodgers is confident tonight’s match will be a whole different beat to the grueling Camp Nou experience.
”So lots of learning came from that, lots of development both in terms of our team mentality and our game, came from that performance. At the time of course, I said it was very disappointing but it hasn’t harmed us, if anything, it has only improved us a group and as a squad,” he reflected on the previous encounter.
It will be a huge success for Rodgers and Celtic if they manage to capture third place in this group which means we are in for an exciting match is expected at Celtic park.
Match Facts
- Celtic have lost nine of their last 12 Champions League games (W1 D2). They are also winless in their last seven; an eighth would equal their longest run without a win in the competition.
- Celtic have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 17 Champions League games, their longest run without a shut-out in the competition.
- Brendan Rodgers has won only one of his 10 group games as manager in the Champions League, that was against Ludogorets Razgrad (2-1) in September 2014 when he was in charge of Liverpool.
- Moussa Dembélé has scored three of Celtic’s four goals in this season’s Champions League. He also won but missed a penalty against Barcelona at the Camp Nou.
- Barcelona have won seven of their nine Champions League games against Celtic (D1 L1). Celtic’s only win in that run was in November 2012 when they recorded only 15% possession at Celtic Park to beat the Catalans (2-1).
- Neymar has scored four goals and delivered five assists in three Champions League games against Celtic. He’s had twice as many assists as any other player in this season’s tournament (6).
- Lionel Messi has scored seven goals in three games in this season’s Champions League, that’s already more than he achieved in the whole of last season (6).
Team News
Celtic: Tierney (ankle), Griffiths (hamstring), Touré (groin)
Barcelona: Iniesta (knee), Umtiti (hamstring), Mathieu (calf)
From : Sofascore.com
