BROWN: BHOYS MUST STAY CALM
Skipper’s clarion call to end Euro failures
SCOTT BROWN last night issued a clarion call for Celtic to stand tall on the European stage this week to end two years of Champions League hurt.
The Hoops skipper admits the club’s double failure to reach the group stage has left its mark on him and the team. And, as Celtic jetted off from Glasgow today for Wednesday’s first leg of the second qualifying round clash with Astana in Kazakhstan, Brown was desperate to atone for previous early exits.
He said: “We have missed out over the last two seasons on the group stage but there are a few of us who know what we are missing. For me,
playing for Celtic was always about playing in big European nights and that is where we want to be this season.
“The away games are always hard. It is about keeping your head, even if you are up against a noisy crowd or whatever. We always know that if we can get a team back to Celtic Park then we can be pretty intimidating ourselves.”
Brown has set his team a twin target of keeping a clean sheet and trying to nick an away goal to givem the edge in the return before a full house at Parkhead.
He was part of the Celtic team who lost 2-0 to Shakhter Karagandy in 2013 on the same pitch that will be used on Wednesday afternoon and he believes that it is imperative that the Parkhead side use all their experience going into the tie.
“If memory serves me right the pitch isn’t the greatest,” he said. “But I also think we made a couple of chances that night too that we didn’t take.
“That can be the difference between success and failure.
“We all know how valuable an away goal can be in this tournament and if we can keep our concentration, keep our focus then we can maybe nab something to bring back.”
Celtic brought in Kolo Toure yesterday, with Brown delighted at the arrival of the veteran defender.
Manager Brendan Rodgers had spoken of his belief that a player of that ilk can help out Brown, with his leadership qualities expected to come to the fore on the pitch.
The Hoops skipper said: “Kolo is a brilliant addition and I am sure he will be a big player for us.
“Having someone with that level of experience at the top level can only be an advantage to us.
“We’ve got a lot of pace in the team now and he’s definitely going to add to it. He’s strong, aggressive in the air and good on the ball – all the qualities we were looking to bring in.
“It’s good to have someone talking for 90 minutes behind you.
“We’ve had that in the past and he’ll bring that quality to us. It definitely gives us all a lift having someone of that stature coming into the club.