PITCH perfect
After returning from injury in Munich, Armstrong aims to hit all the right notes at Pittodrie and offer the Celtic fans something to really shout about
AROUND the bierkellers and pavement cafes of Munich’s old town, the Celtic supporters’ tribute to Stuart Armstrong rang out loudly and persistently. Later, it echoed through the subway tunnels that snake out from the city centre towards the Allianz Arena before reaching maximum volume inside the space-age stadium. Somewhere along the way the earworm even managed to burrow its way into the confines of the team hotel.
‘Kieran Tierney likes it,’ smiled Armstrong as he settled into conversation in the aftermath of Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich. ‘And he’s been singing it to me.’
If gallons of German brew affected the melodiousness of the chant on Wednesday night, the song’s protagonist admits he’s just flattered to have emulated Tierney, the home-grown talent for whom the supporters also love to sing.
He also knows he can offer more in return than was shown in Munich — and over the coming weeks he intends to prove it.
Sidelined for almost a month with a calf problem, Armstrong made his comeback in Germany and managed 65 minutes in a 3-0 loss.
There were but mere flashes of his trademark drive from midfield as Bayern bossed the match, not least through the strutting performance of Thomas Muller, imperious skipper and scorer of the first goal.
As part of the preamble to Armstrong’s £2million transfer from Dundee United,
Ronny Deila made a ridiculous comparison between the two players, but Wednesday only served to illustrate the distance these Celtic players must travel before they can pretend to be at the top.
Armstrong deserved his move in early 2015 but it’s only over the past 12 months or so that he has truly come into his own as a Celtic player. Freed from a restrictive left-wing role by Brendan Rodgers, the 26-year-old burst into life around this time last year, and by December was scoring those belters almost every time he walked on to the pitch.
As the current season enters a defining phase, his contribution from the middle of the park will be crucial.
‘I’ve missed a few games but I’m okay,’ he says. ‘Physically I felt all right out there but, obviously, there had been the lay-off. Games are coming thick and fast which is always the case as you move towards Christmas.
‘The boys are used to that. It is all about taking one game at a time and recovering right which is really important.’
Yesterday’s Betfred Cup semi-final versus Hibs was the second instalment in a gruelling week of football set across three competitions. The triptych of tough fixtures concludes this Wednesday as the champions head to Pittodrie for a top-of-the-table Premiership clash with Aberdeen.
While Celtic have been exerting themselves in Europe and at Hampden, Dons manager Derek McInnes has had the luxury of a ten-day window in which to prepare exclusively for this match.
Aberdeen have been Celtic’s closest challengers for three seasons, but Celtic have enjoyed the task of batting away the challenge from the north east. This week, you suspect they would be happy to emerge with any kind of victory. A point might even be viewed as a big gain for a team undefeated domestically since Rodgers’ arrival.
‘Aberdeen are a good side,’ observes Armstrong. ‘Sometimes I think they have had a couple of dodgy performances but then you look at the league table and they are still right there with us.
‘They have a lot of good players. So it will be an interesting game.
‘When we play them up there they are always really up for it. It is always tight and it is a physical battle as well.’ With the onloan Ryan Christie unavailable to play against his parent club, Armstrong’s close friend Gary MackaySteven is likely to provide one of the main threats to Celtic. The winger moved from Tannadice to Celtic on the same day as Armstrong but never managed to kick on in quite the same way. Mackay-Steven looked overawed in Glasgow but has shown signs of re-emerging from his shell this season and scored a valuable winning goal for his new club against Hibs last weekend.
‘Everyone wants to play football regularly and up there he certainly has a chance to do that,’ adds Armstrong.
‘He scored last weekend and he will take confidence from that. I have played football with Gaz for five or six years, so I have seen what he can do and what he is capable of. He is a top-quality player.’
Although missing for a relatively short period of time, the absence of Armstrong and Scott Brown from the heart of the Scotland team was a major factor in the team’s fall at the final hurdle in the quest for a World Cup play-off place.
Armstrong and Brown attended the penultimate qualifier against Slovakia and celebrated with their team-mates in Hampden’s home dressing-room after Martin Skrtel’s 89th-minute own goal gave Scotland the chance to seal second place with a win in Slovenia.
Had it been Brown and Armstrong and
They have a lot of good players. It will be a really interesting game
not Barry Bannan and James McArthur incentral midfield, perhaps Scotland would have got the result. ‘It’s disappointing because there was a lot of momentum and good feeling in the camp that we could go on and reach the play-offs,’ muses Armstrong. ‘When we got the three points at home to e was a genuine feeling we could do it.’ Having taken just four points from the first 12 available in qualifying, Gordon Strachan held on to his job by mapping out a route to second place from the remaining fixtures. The campaign turned on a 1-0 home win over Slovenia, a game that provided Armstrong’s first cap and with it an assist for Chris Martin’s late winner. Armstrong held on to his place through the games against England, Lithuania and Malta, scoring a fine header in Vilnius as the team motored into contention with a three-goal win that was as accomplished as any Scotland away performance in years.
Strachan may have delivered improvement but was ultimately judged on the final outcome and will therefore not see an extension to the contract which expires next month.
That is the cause of some regret for Armstrong.
‘I was sad to learn that,’ he admits. ‘He gave me my chance and he believed in me. There was certainly a good feeling in the camp and I think I speak for everyone when I say that.
‘Our recent record was really good and it felt like we were really building something. With the squad we have and how we played in 2017, there is certainly a good feeling going into the next campaign.’
Bayern may have left Celtic bruised but Armstrong also believes Rodgers’ side are also moving in the right direction in a European context.
Although outclassed and overpowered in Germany, Armstrong insists Celtic felt far more comfortable against Munich than they had in their opening-night thrashing by PSG in Glasgow. And with three points banked from the three-goal defeat of Anderlecht in between, Rodgers’ team remains on track to achieve the stated goal of securing European football beyond Christmas.
‘Bayern didn’t have the same feel as the PSG game. It felt a bit more open,’ he explains. ‘We showed glimpses of intent and I thought we improved upon that performance. We were certainly getting up to people but this is top level, these are some of the best players in the world.
‘You have to take into account that they are going to have possession and good times in the game. They scored from crosses which is a bit disappointing.’
With Jozo Simunovic and Erik Sviatchenko injured, Rodgers was forced to move Mikael Lustig inside to centre-half with Cristian Gamboa at right-back.
It was no coincidence that all three Bayern goals arrived from cross balls but Armstrong, who could be seen making a calming gesture to his defensive teammates after the concession of Muller’s opener, expected better diligence.
‘I just think everyone that goes in there knows how to play football,’ he observes. ‘It is little things that make the difference in the big games, especially with their quality — they will punish you.’
Celtic don’t have long to make amends as this breathless week will give way to another as the Germans return to Glasgow for round two of the mid-campaign double-header on Hallowe’en.
‘I think we can take the game to them at home,’ he says. ‘We’ll certainly get the lift of the crowd and that will give us momentum.
Armstrong announced himself as a Celtic player with a fine goal against Inter Milan just a fortnight after signing from Dundee United but would love to add a first Champions League goal to his CV.
Do that and the chants surrounding his blond mane will reach a crescendo.
‘It’s especially nice when you are out on the pitch and hear that, it makes you realise you are part of something special,’ he adds. ‘There are good songs for KT and Scotty (Sinclair) and the fans have put a bit of effort into the words for me.
‘It is up to yourselves to judge whether they are accurate or not!’