BAIN: WE CAN HANDLE HEAT GOING FOR 10
CELTIC Chris: Edouard can show he’s the man for Les Bleus in Lyon
BY MICHAEL GANNON
SCOTT BAIN has told Rangers that Celtic will withstand all pressure as they bid to land 10 in a row this season.
The champions have dominated Scottish football for a near decade and will break the record of nine successive titles currently held by the Hoops and Rangers if they come out on top next May.
Ibrox hitman Jermain Defoe has cranked up the heat by insisting he believes Steven Gerrard’s side can go all the way.
But Bain has warned their Old Firm rivals the Hoops won’t buckle in their quest to make even more history.
The keeper said: “The players have shown they’re more than capable of handling any pressure that gets put on them.
“As a squad, we don’t read into what’s anyone else is saying.
“We just know that, if we do the job we set out to do and do it to our full ability, then we can come away with three points.
“It might sound like a cliche but it’s a marathon, not a sprint.
“We always focus fully on one game at a time and if we can play the way we’re capable of, we can ignore the outside noise.”
After working on their fitness at Loughborough University for a week, the Celtic squad will head out to France with three friendly games against Nice, Lyon and Paris St Germain lined up as part of the preparations.
Bain insists the squad’s focus is fully on getting ready for the season ahead and ensuring they find top form as soon as possible.
The 28-year-old, currently the only senior keeper at Parkhead after the departures of Fraser Forster and Craig Gordon, said: “The boys are really chomping at the bit to get back into it, given the way last season ended.
“Right now we’re all really focused on getting back into it and excited to get on the pitch to start the season off as well as we possibly can.
“We’ve been back for a few weeks now and it already feels back to normal, as if we’ve never been away.
“Everyone has been really excited to be back and it has made for a great atmosphere every day.
“Just getting out the house every day for several hours and having that routine back is something we all really appreciate.”
Meanwhile, Jack Hendry last night completed his loan move to Oostende, as first revealed by Record Sport. The centre-back will play in Belgium for the whole of next season.
CELTIC’S French stars might not get the chance to put on a show for their pals this week.
But Christopher Jullien reckons it won’t be long before Odsonne Edouard is making some new friends in the France senior set-up.
The Hoops will crank up their pre-season preparations across the Channel this week – with clashes against Nice on Thursday, Moussa Dembele’s Lyon on Saturday then PSG in Paris on Tuesday.
Jullien is relishing the return to his homeland after a month in the Lennoxtown and Loughborough bubble. But although some fans will be allowed in to test the water, the limited tickets will leave most shut out
The defender’s family live close to the Parc de Princes but they will need to tune in on telly like the Celtic supporters who have been told not to travel.
But it’s only a minor disappointment for Jullien. His mind is focused on getting Celtic up to speed for the start of the new campaign – and the Champion League qualifiers that are coming quickly over the horizon.
However, he admits the
BY MICHAEL GANNON homecoming could be an ideal chance for Edouard to remind France bosses about what he’s all about.
The attendance will be limited to 5000 for the three games – but the people who matter will be watching.
Jullien said: “When the PSG game was announced my phone starting making noise and my friends were like, ‘Yeah, this is great, we’ll see you in Paris.’
“It’s a little sad that no one can come because it’s close to me, maybe 30 minutes from my house. But it’s okay. You can understand why and it’s same for Oli (Ntcham) and Odsonne.”
Jullien and Ntcham can also dream about making the France squad but they know it’s Edouard who has the best shot of breaking into one of the most talented groups on the planet.
The French don’t exactly have a dearth of talent up front – with the likes of Kylian Mbappe,
CHRISTOPHER JULLIEN ON HIS PAL’S FRANCE CHANCES
“I was like, ‘Oh, I’m not sure people can go along to the games.’
Kingsley Coman, Ousmane Dembele, Olivier Giroud and ex-Celt Dembele pushing hard for a place.
But Jullien is convinced his team-mate, an Under-21 star, will be alongside them soon.
The centre-back said: “Odsonne does a lot for the team and we all know it.
“I just know that he is going to try to put his name into Celtic by his way. I know that one day he will be playing at the very highest level.
“Odsonne can get to the Euros next year – definitely.
“The good thing for him is that many of the strikers are totally different. They are not all the same.
“I have played against all three of them. I play every day against Odsonne in the training and I know he is not the same type of player as Dembele.
“And Mbappe is also not the same. They are three very different types and that can only be a good thing for France to have such choices.
“I just can’t wait to see him one day achieve that senior squad and I really hope he will go on and do it.
“Odsonne can have it in his head because he was playing last season for the France
Under-21 team, so he still has the taste of the international break and getting away with the national team.”
The competition for France spots is just as fierce at the back and Jullien admits he’d have his work cut out squeezing in.
A man can dream but for now his sole target is keeping up his impressive form for Celtic and getting the new season off to a flier.
“To get back into the French selection at any time would be just a dream because I did love it when I was there. You play with amazing players and it was great to be part of it.
“But I don’t think so much about it. The biggest achievement for me right now is achieving something big with Celtic and that is what I have my concentration on.”
Talk of the 10 is already at fever pitch in Scotland and Jullien won’t down play the significance of the coming campaign.
But he does have