Moussa not b lamed for mauling

CALLUM McGREGOR has backed Celtic team-mate Moussa Dembele to make light of his Nou Camp disappointment.

The French striker had the chance to equalise from the penalty spot in the Nou Camp last Tuesday night, but Marc-Andre ter Stegen kept his effort out with a diving save allowing Barcelona to kick on and run away with the tie.

If he thought the significance of his failure had been overlooked, he was out of luck, with manager Brendan Rodgers pinpointing it as the key moment of the match from a Celtic perspective.

“Moussa didn’t say sorry to us afterwards, but he didn’t have to, because none of the boys are going to put the blame on him,” said McGregor.

“He scored a hat-trick against Rangers and had an assist too, but had a penalty saved against Barca. That can happen.

“Yes, it was a good chance, and if he had scored then possibly things could have been different.

“We will never know – but none of us will put the defeat at his door.

“We know that Moussa can take big-pressure penalties and score big-pressure penalties. So I am sure if we get another one soon, he will be desperate to take it.”

The midfielder reckons if nothing else, the scale of the defeat was a reminder to all of the Celtic stars of the fate that could await them if they have an off night.

“We did think we could do something in the Nou Camp because our confidence was really high after getting such a good result against Rangers,” he said.

“It was brilliant and everyone enjoys it at the time, and you get your family and friends all congratulating you. The feeling was great and you want to harness that.

“What happened against Barca, though, just shows you that if you don’t turn up on the night, you can end up getting heavily beaten. So we need to remember that.

“The quality was that bit higher and if you switch off even for a second against Barca, they make you pay for it.”