It shows you how far we’ve all come as a team that we’re not happy with a draw in Rennes
BACK on familiar soil, Christopher Jullien reminded a French audience of the talent recently lost to the Scottish game. The Celtic centre-back looked worth every penny of the £7million it cost to sign him from Toulouse this summer as he glided through Thursday night’s 1-1 Europa League draw against Rennes.
Timing interceptions to perfection and showing composure in distribution, Jullien was rightly hailed as ‘outstanding’ by manager Neil Lennon.
For the family and friends who had travelled from Paris to be inside Roazhon Park, there was surely pride in being able to acclaim the 26-year-old as one of their own.
Don’t assume, however, that Jullien regarded this as some kind of perfect homecoming. Far from it. As much as he enjoyed the experience, he still boarded the flight back to Glasgow carrying a nagging sense of frustration.
It is a sign of the standards he aims to set — and those Lennon wants to witness — that a point in Brittany against a team currently second in Ligue 1 was viewed as insufficient.
So comfortable were Celtic for long spells in the match that the defender firmly believes they could have taken more at the start of Group E.
‘Was it a big result? Not so much, to be honest,’ said Jullien. ‘We showed our stuff. We played well at times but perhaps we didn’t have as many shots at goal as we would have liked.
‘We limited them to just one or two chances. Even in the final few minutes, they were pushing but they did not create much.
‘It was a little bit of a sad feeling not to get the three points. Perhaps it shows how far we have come that we are disappointed not to have won the match.
‘It was a good performance, though, so we took the point and we’ll look forward to the next one against Cluj next month. It’s going to be a big game.
‘Personally, it was really special to come back and play in France. I was focused on getting a result.
‘I didn’t know what to expect but it was a pleasure to play in front of my family again. It was a quick visit but I got a chance to see them. It was a strange feeling coming back with my new team but I enjoyed it.
‘My family are from Paris and they are Paris Saint-Germain fans — but they are supporters of Christopher Jullien!’
It was surely a note of respect for Celtic’s threat in wide areas that Rennes coach Julien Stephan switched from his favoured 3-5-2 to go with a 4-1-4-1 shape.
However, he was disappointed if he hoped the Parkhead side would be spooked by the unexpected tweak.
A central midfield three of Scott Brown, Callum McGregor and the more advanced Ryan Christie was able to dictate solid spells of possession. Even after Kristoffer Ajer rashly conceded a penalty to allow the hosts an unmerited lead, Lennon’s team refused to panic.
It was only once Christie had levelled from the spot, having earlier been denied a clear claim by erratic Spanish referee Jose Maria Sanchez, that Rennes began to apply any kind of substantial pressure.
‘They didn’t surprise me with the way they played,’ said Jullien.
‘I knew after we scored the penalty they would come on stronger and they did.
‘I can’t pretend we always thought we would manage a large win. But sometimes if you can’t win, you make sure you don’t lose — and we did that.’
The outcome sets up a fascinating rematch against Celtic’s Champions League conquerors Cluj.
With the Romanians recording a shock success over Lazio on Thursday night, Celtic know taking a measure of vengeance with a home win on October 3 would place them in a very promising position.
‘The group will be very even, for sure,’ argued Jullien. ‘Cluj showed in our stadium they are a good team and they can be ruthless. The next game will be a good battle.
‘We are also a good team and we want to do well in this competition. We have qualities and I think we have shown that since we lost the Cluj game.’
Jullien’s contribution was further praised by Fraser Forster. Although Ajer blotted his performance in Rennes by needlessly hauling M’Baye Niang to the ground, the goalkeeper sees huge potential in the centre-back pairing directly in front of him.
‘I think they have been brilliant,’ said Forster, who had only two real saves to make in the first European outing of his loan return from Southampton.
‘The more games they play together, the more that partnership will build and build. They are good on the ball, they get on it and play from the back, which is good.
‘We’re three big lads and the more we play together as a back four or back five, the more we’ll get used to each other and form those partnerships.’
Forster was at Celtic when they recorded the same 1-1 scoreline in Rennes eight years ago.
That result was an important building block towards European success in Lennon’s first tenure as manager but the Northern Irishman feels he now has greater talent at his disposal.
‘I think there is loads to be positive about,’ agreed Forster, with Celtic aiming for a sixth straight Premiership win when they host Kilmarnock tomorrow.
‘We have a really good squad here, a good mix of experience and youth. Even the younger players have also played a lot of games, so we have very good options.
‘I’m sure that if we play well and concentrate on our game plan, then we will give this group a really good go.’