GRIFF: LET’S SAY ASTANA VISTA BABY
Leigh calls on Celts to sink Kazakhs
LEIGH Griffiths, the striker whose late goal earned Celtic a 1-1 draw with Astana the first leg of the Champions League third qualifying round yesterday, today backed his side to win their rematch next week to progress to the play-off.
Griffiths netted a precious away strike for Brendan Rodgers’s side in the 78th minute at the Astana Arena here i n Kazakhstan to make
the Scottish champions favourites to progress to the next round.
The Scotland internationalist is confident the Glasgow club can put the tie to bed when they face Stanimir Stoilov’s team at Celtic Park on Wednesday night and move a step closer to the lucrative group stages of the competition.
“Coming away from home, we would have taken a 1-1 draw,” he said. “We knew it was going to be a hostile atmosphere with a lot of noise and that they would come at us. But apart from the goal, they didn’t create a lot of chances.
“Of course we fancy our chances. The crowd at home will create a lot more noise and we’ll be back on grass, which will be a bonus for us and maybe not for them. With the five-hour time difference, it’ll be like playing at two o’clock in the morning for them. Back being on grass and moving it quickly, we can cause them problems.”
Griffiths added: “I loved the goal. You can’t go sprinting about, but you also need to enjoy moments like that. To score an away goal was massive and hopefully we can go and finish the job in the second leg. We knew there was going to be pressure at the corners and throw-ins, but we knew if we could keep it tight in the second half, we’d get a chance. Fortunately for me, the ball fell at my feet and I’ve managed to put it away.
“I’m always confident of scoring goals, no matter what level that I’m playing at. It’s just about getting the ball in the right places at the right times. My decision making could be better on occasions but, thankfully, I’ve scored an important away goal here and we’ll look to go back to Celtic Park and finish the job.”