Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Rodgers wants positive belief
BOSS Brendan Rodgers d e s c r i b e d C e l t i c ’s 5 - 0 defeat by Paris St Germain as “humbling” but stressed the need for a more positive Champions League mindset.
It was a record home defeat for the Hoops i n Europe, with their worst away defeat coming at the start of last season’s campaign when they were thrashed 7-0 in Barcelona.
Celtic finished bottom of their section, which also included Borussia Monchengladbach and Manchester City with three points.
German giants Bayern Munich and Belgium side Anderlecht also await the Scottish champions in this season’s competition and, while Rodgers acknowledged how difficult it is to progress into the knockout stages, he i s looking for a change i n mentality.
“The problems we had in the game were probably more mental than anything else,” said the Northern Irishman, who confirmed striker Moussa Dembele is available after recovering from a hamstring injury.
“It’s the mentality for me. I think for Celtic to qualify for the Champions League is huge in many ways, but that can’t be seen just to be the success.
“I want us to go into the Champions League and then i mpose our way of playing and way of working.
“I know we’re a million miles away financially from where other teams are at, but it still should allow us to compete.
“Of course that takes a little bit of time to get that mentality across. It shouldn’t just be a celebration of us qualifying.
“We know how huge it is for everyone.We know what it is for the nation to have that representation, but that just can’t be it. And it won’t be. It’s something we’ll learn from.
“That was a humbling experience for them.”