CELTIC CHASE DEFENDER COMPPER
he won’t be able to take any part in their Europa League campaign. Compper first burst on to the scene with Borussia Monchengladbach, moving to Hoffenheim for five years before an 18-month spell with Italians Fiorentina. He returned to Germany to help Leipzig win promotion to the top flight but is now seeking to move to a club where first-team football is a more realistic proposition. Rodgers has also been linked with Astana’s Ghanaian midfielder Patrick Twumasi but a move is unlikely to materialise. The Celtic manager yesterday welcomed the pairing with the Russians, which will see a first leg in Glasgow on February 15 with the return in St Petersburg seven days later. Zenit, now managed by Roberto Mancini, are second in their league after drawing 0-0 with FK Akhmat yesterday but now enter a winter shutdown that will still be on when they travel to Scotland. Rodgers remains hopeful that any lingering ring-rust can work in his side’s favour. ‘If you look at it in reverse, it’s a bit like the challenges we face at the end of a season, coming straight into it,’ he said. ‘And some of the teams we have to play in qualification are already in season. It’s difficult. ‘They’re off on their winter break. Then they will be back in January, trying to get ready for that game.’ Part of the 56,000 capacity Krestovsky Stadium will be closed for Celtic’s visit after UEFA hammered Zenit supporters for displaying political banners. Russian football also has a history of racism but Rodgers, who took his Liverpool team there in 2013, insists he has no fears about his players being targeted. ‘There was huge policing there, but we had no issues with it,’ said Rodgers.
CELTIC hope to tie up a move for RB Leipzig centre-half Marvin Compper — with the German international topping Brendan Rodgers’ January wish-list.
Paired yesterday with Zenit St Petersburg in the last 32 of the Europa League, Rodgers hopes to address his side’s defensive frailties by recruiting the vastly experienced defender at the turn of the year.
Still with 18 months to run on his present deal, 32-year-old Compper has found himself marginalised as free-spending manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has remodelled the squad which finished second in the Bundesliga last season.
Celtic would require to pay a fee for the player but