The European nights at Liverpool had me hooked — now I dream of doing it with Celtic
I want to savour the atmosphere with the fans at Celtic Park
AS A teenager within the Liverpool youth ranks, Gary Mackay-Steven used to watch Champions League fever descend upon Anfield and dream of being involved where it mattered.
Six years on from the end of his time on Merseyside, and a couple of hundred miles further north, an opportunity to mix it with Europe’s elite i s now within touching distance. His determination to grasp it is almost palpable.
Mackay- Steven and his Celtic colleagues now know that Malmo stand in their way of a place in the group stage. In terms of logistics, it is certainly more favourable than the trips to Kazakhstan or Albania that also lurked within yesterday’s play-off draw.
Air miles are not, of course, the only i ssue. The Swedish champions recorded a 3-0 secondleg win over Red Bull Salzburg — who recorded a Europa League victory at Parkhead last November — to reach this stage. There will be no walkover to earn the basic £16million windfall qualification would deliver to Celtic.
Yet this is why Mackay-Steven, and others, joined the club in the first place. Maximum motivation can be called upon to help fulfil an ambition kindled by watching Steven Gerrard et al take on the best.
‘I wasn’t involved behind the scenes when I was at Liverpool,’ recalled Mackay-Steven. ‘I was a spectator at every Champions League game while I was there.
‘Training at Melwood beside the first team, you knew the buzz that s urrounded t he Champions League. The atmosphere at Anfield on those nights was incredible. I imagine it won’t be too dissimilar to Celtic Park.
‘I remember Liverpool beat Real Madrid and it was an amazing night. I just want to savour those nights and that atmosphere with the fans at Celtic Park. It would be amazing to hear the songs and the Champions League music here.
‘This tournament is something I’ve watched every single year for as long as I can remember.
‘It is the ultimate club competition and I’ ve always wanted to play there. It’s the pinnacle f or any player j ust because of who you are up against in terms of opposition.
‘Every player is the same. It’s a massive ambition for me, even when I was at Dundee United because you’re young and you’re dreaming of playing in the group stages.
‘It’s hard to imagine it’s within touching distance for me now. It’s crazy to think like that, but the job is far from done, our biggest job is still ahead of us.’
Sub-plots ooze from the clash with Malmo. Ronny Deila turned down the chance to become their manager early last year, when at Stromsgodset.
Fellow Norwegian Age Hareide landed the job, guiding Malmo to another Allsvenskan title and a place in the Champions League group stage. In May, Hareide declared that his team was better than both Celtic and Rosenborg. He has now expressed a wish for ‘revenge’ against the Parkhead club, who defeated his Helsingborg side with a comfortable victory in the 2012 qualifiers.
Further spice is added by the fact one of Malmo’s key players is Jo Inge Berget, who had a distinctly underwhelming loan spell at Celtic last season. He will be mined for i nformation on his former team-mates.
After the six-hour flight that followed Wednesday’s professional containment of Qarabag in Azerbaijan, Mackay- Steven is content simply to be staying closer to home.
‘First impressions are that I’m happy with the draw,’ said the 24-year- old. ‘I think, looking at some of the teams involved, it could have been worse for us.
‘It’s not too far a journey and we definitely know more about this team than we did about the last one we played.
‘All in all, I think it’s a good draw. We could have been faced with another long journey but we have managed to avoid that this time.
‘It will be a tough tie because you only need to look at their result against Red Bull Salzburg, but they are two games we are looking forward to.
‘We are close to the Champions League now, but it’s by no means done. We are within touching distance and these two games against Malmo are going to be massive for everyone involved.
‘They are going to be incredibly difficult for everyone associated with the club, but the aim is to get back into the group stages. We have a real chance to do that now.’
Assistant manager John Collins admitted yesterday that Celtic have yet to click as an attacking f orce this season. The clear positive, however, came in the way Deila’s side defended over the two legs of their 1-0 aggregate success against Qarabag.
Virgil van Dijk and Dedryck Boyata provided solid resistance at centre-back, with those in front of them working overtime to shut down space.
‘ There was a real sense of satisfaction the other night,’ admitted Mackay-Steven. ‘We did what we had to do.
‘If we’d managed to get a goal, it could have been more comfortable but we worked hard and got the job done.
‘Our defence held up well and it’s a side of the game I’ve been working hard on.
‘You need to be capable in all aspects of your game and it’s about getting into the right positions and making i t hard f or the other teams.
‘We had to work like that the ot her ni g ht a nd i t was a professional performance.
‘You have to make sacrifices. I wanted to create more chances, but ultimately that will come.
‘Things will click for us as the season goes on.’
The meeting with Malmo will define s o much of Celtic’s campaign. For now, though, minds must be trained on tomorrow’s Premiership visit to Partick Thistle.
‘We have to put the Champions League thing on the back burner,’ added Mackay-Steven.
‘We have a massive game in the league on Sunday and Partick have signed a few new players, too. It’s about focusing on that game and forgetting what’s to come in Europe.’