CL: Celtic vs. Spartak (5/12 19:45)

I hope Brown doesn't play, he's not fit. I'd start Izzy too.

Forster

Lustig Ambrose Wilson Izaguirre

Kayal Ledley Mulgrew

Commons Samaras
Hooper

It's also my 21st birthday on Wednesday, I hope to * Barca and Celtic give me a good present. :icon_mrgreen:
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Negative and cynical? He reckons well do enough to qualify. Most fans are positive about our chances of qualifying whilst being realistic. Your deluded if you thing it's gonna be a walkover.

If we can lose to Inverness amongst others we can lose to spartack. Hope the players dont have the same mentality that you do.

 

Going to this! Gonna be my first European game ever! Taking my dad as well got him tickets for Christmas, he's been telling me about the atmosphere on European nights all my life! He's not been since Real Madrid in 1980 because after that he moved down to England, we're both * it

 

Barca scored 5 at home today v Bilbao, and have scored no fewer than 3 goals in each of the 6 matches since we beat them. They're on a very good streak, needless to say.

Pure speculation but wouldn't surprise me if Barca start near full strength with the intention of finishing things by halftime. At least that's my hope!

We need to hit Spartak early so it doesn't turn into some statement/turn around their season type event.

 

A couple of points:

1) Spartak may play in a bigger league but their league form this year is worse than ours.
2) Expensive players don't mean quality players.
3) We've beat them already this season - 2-3 (away from home), could have been more.
4) They put 2 past Barcelona at the Camp Nou. They lost 3-2. They put 2 past us at the Luzhniki. They lost 2-3. Their goal difference is -6! They have the worst defensive record in the group and they have only taken 3 points from 5 matches.
5) They're a club in turmoil. The fans are not on side - they claimed the team threw the game against Zenit because no Spartak team has ever played so badly. They've just sacked their manager.
6) They have nothing to gain from this match.
7) Our European form this year has been very good, despite the disappointment in Lisbon.
8) Messi wants goals to break Gerd Müller's record.

I doubt there'll ever be a better time to get the result we need.

 

We should be getting a draw out of this at the very least. We don't need to talk about the lift that playing inside Celtic Park gives the home players on European nights. We know all about that and so does the rest of the world.

With the supporters behind them and the added incentive of playing in the last 16, I believe we will do this. 3-1 to the Hoops

 

I said I think we'll qualify. I'm just saying you are totally over confident if you think there is no chance of us finishing third.

This game is not a stick on no matter what team they bring.

 

Now that I sit back and think about it, Spartak must really have developed a hate for us in these last few years.

Dumped them out of the CL on penalties in the 2007/08 season under Strachan and now knocked them out of the group stages of the same competition four years later :smiley-laughing002:

 

:Forster:
:Lustig: :Wilson: :Mulgrew: :Izaguirre:
:Kayal: :Ambrose: :Brown:
:Lassad:
:Hooper: :Samaras:
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Wonder if McGeady will play?

 

No Commons?

 

Think he plays most of their games, so probably?

We need to put todays dissapointing result behind us and concentrate 100% on this, can't wait

 

Is Ledley out? If not, I'd go with this but with Joe in for Mulgrew. Ambrose and Wilson have to start as a CB pairing, I think.

 

Can't wait for this game! Wonder if the atmosphere will surpass the Barcelona one?

 

Great post.

 

No, I hope not. He's a donkey of late. Sad to say.

 

From the UEFA site:

• Neil Lennon's Celtic are looking to complete their first ever double over opponents in the UEFA Champions League. The Glasgow club's 3-2 victory over Spartak at the Stadion Luzhniki on 2 October was their first away victory in 21 attempts in the modern-day competition.

• Celtic have already earned a famous 2-1 victory against FC Barcelona at home in Group G, as well as holding Benfica 0-0. Should they beat Spartak, they would have ten points – their highest tally in seven appearances in the group stage.

• Already sure of finishing bottom, Spartak have suffered an early exit for the fifth successive time in the UEFA Champions League. They have lost both away matches in the section, though they did earn a 1-1 draw at Fenerbahçe SK in the play-offs.

• Dmitri and Kirill Kombarov were in the FC Dinamo Moskva side that won 1-0 at Celtic in the third qualifying round of the 2009/10 UEFA Champions League – but then lost 2-0 at home to goals from McDonald and Giorgos Samaras. McGeady was in the Celtic side.

 

Alright bhoys,

I bought the package at the start of the season, still haven't got my ticket for Spartak game yet, anyone in the same boat?

Going to phone tomorrow and get it sorted.

Cheers

 

Although he was poor today, Miku would be a good option for Wednesday, in my opinion. His main attribute being his first touch could be deadly on the break. We all now how Spartak struggle when we counter attack them.

 

He was decent against Barca and can definitely front up for major matches.