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For obvious reasons, Walter Smith disliked discussing his hypothesis in public.
However, there were really some seasons when the legendary former Ranger couldn’t wait for the Champions League to finish so he could return to winning domestic championships and mend the harm that European football’s big boys had done to his players’ self-esteem. For the club, the money was beneficial. But Smith’s top concern was always the batterings he was taking on the field.
Brendan Rodgers is currently dealing with the same challenges while being on the opposite side of the city. With just one point out of a possible fifteen in Group A, Rodgers and his team are stranded at the bottom of the group and will not be able to qualify for Europe. And wondering if they would ever be able to figure out a riddle that has been plaguing the team for over ten years—namely, when they last triumphed in UEFA’s main event at home.
Even worse, the wobbling that so concerned Smith in the past is now present in the domestic form. Rodgers anticipated giving it his all against Feyenoord at home on Tuesday, but the loss at Kilmarnock on Sunday cast a pall on his media duties. He’s been watching the tapes for the past few days, showing his team where they made such huge mistakes and gave in to bullying at Rugby Park.
And after a miserable afternoon in the pouring rain in Ayrshire, he managed to do it while battling a chest and throat infection. “The great value in it is about learning,” he stated. You must take lessons from it. Both new players and players who haven’t played much recently are part of the team.
“There’s truly a lot for everyone to learn from this. Playing for a premier team pays you to handle these stressful situations. But somehow, that composure vanished from our performance. You may become stuck if you don’t play the way we want you to.
Rodgers is accustomed to living in this region of the world, where losing in the league might signal the start of a serious situation. Some of his players, though, are having to learn the hard way.
It is, he stated, always. The highs and lows are greatest and lowest respectively when you’re at the largest and most devoted clubs. But maintaining composure is crucial. At the weekend, nobody was more dissatisfied than us. The second half’s level was not what I had anticipated. However, we must move on. We now have a fantastic opportunity to accomplish it in the Champions League. After that, we can start the weekend.
Rodgers must yet heal them and reenter a competition that has been eroding their confidence since it started in September despite this ruthlessly cruel backdrop. While praying that Smith doesn’t do any more harm like he did all those years ago. “It can be damaging—and that’s a great point,” he continued, nodding.
“There are undoubtedly hiccups along the way, that much is certain. If you are performing well at home, you may suffer when you play against elite players. Naturally, that presents a challenge. In any case, though, you must embrace and enjoy it. At this point, you wouldn’t want to compete in any other league—aside from the Europa League, of course, if you wanted to stay in Europe.”
When asked if he had ever had to put an arm around one of his great players, as Smith once had to do, he replied, “That’s it, that’s the job.” Furthermore, the way we’ve begun several of the games we’ve played indicates that the players are entering them with confidence.
“Remember how we began against Feyenoord, at home against Lazio and Atletico Madrid, and even in our away match against Atletico. That indicates that there is unquestionably confidence. And it’s our responsibility to maintain perspective about where we are while maintaining our drive to succeed.
It probably doesn’t help that the past ten years without a home win statistic have been continually beaten over the head. Rodgers stated: “The difficulty is there. It was a different football ten or fifteen years ago. Even when the game changes, we still want to succeed and have high hopes.
“To be successful, one must qualify and advance to the knockout stages.” That is, without a doubt, what we want to do here. Gaining victories at home is crucial for that. I have instructed the players not to obsess over the run, and I myself don’t worry about it. All you can do is try your hardest and assault the game.
They’re not required to. It’s not all their fault. All they can think of right now is demonstrating their technical proficiency and excitement for playing and performing. We can definitely get a result if they continue doing that throughout the game.
“I firmly believe that Celtic is a Champions League team. However, the key is to identify that consistency. A squad at full strength, performing at the same caliber as we did against Atletico Madrid? We would have a great chance if we could attempt to maintain that.
But not this time. No, now all Celtic has to do is play out a fixture against a Dutch team that has already guaranteed third-place qualification into the Europa League—something they could probably all do without.
When it came to their longer-term development, did Aaron Rodgers’ players have an opportunity to make a statement during this final dead-rubber?
“You can make a performance,” he replied. There are no friendlies or games you can ignore for Celtic, whether it’s a preseason match or something similar.
The athletes put in a great deal of effort to qualify for this competition. This season has been difficult; there have been both difficult and incredibly wonderful times. However, that’s the desired level and position. I hope we can end on a really positive note and return next season.
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