Right now, the Champions League is probably furthest from the minds of the Celtic fans at the moment.
With the team’s domestic form looking very shaky at the moment, the prospect of facing Europe’s elite is looking more and more daunting as the competition approaches.
However, that hasn’t dampened Celtic striker, Daizen Maeda‘s expectations. The Japanese forward is still looking forward to the competition and has told who he would like Celtic to face when the competition kicks off next month.
Maeda said [Daily Record], “I don’t want to face any club in particular but I do think about playing Real Madrid again. Not for revenge but just to show that we’re strong and can get wins. I want us to show that we’re a different team.
“As a club, we’re aiming to go through the group stage. It is very important for us to see how far we can take the club. That is what we want to achieve.”
Can Celtic make it through the Champions League group stages?
If you were to ask that question to every Celtic fan right now, they would probably say no. With the team’s current form and injuries, the thought of going to Ibrox will be at the forefront of their minds. Not facing Real Madrid.
A lot will depend on who Celtic draw, of course, but with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Maik Nawrocki ruled out of the opening group stage fixture, and with Reo Hatate a major doubt, Celtic are already up against it before the draw has even been made.
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Even with a settled side last season, Celtic struggled to compete in the group stages. Even at Celtic Park with the crowd behind them, the team still couldn’t really lay a glove on Real Madrid and the rest.
There was a time when the Celtic fans would have taken anyone in the Champions League. In fact, it wasn’t too long ago when the team could go toe to toe with the best in Europe.
All the fans can really hope for now is for Brendan Rodgers to get busy in the transfer market and add some much-needed quality that the team is sorely lacking.
In other news, Celtic music star makes bold suggestion that 23-year-old player is better than Daizen Maeda