Old friends turn to foes for Kolarov

FOR Aleksandar Kolarov, stepping out on to the Parkhead pitch tonight will feel like an old boys’ reunion. Lining up for Celtic will be former Manchester City team-mates Kolo Toure and Scott Sinclair, while young Patrick Roberts — on loan but allowed to play against his parent club — will likely be on the bench.

Kolarov also recalls being impressed with Nir Bitton while the Israeli was on trial in Manchester.

And he reckons with players of that calibre in Celtic’s ranks, as well as on-form striker Moussa Dembele, the Scottish champions can’t be written off.

‘I played with all of these guys for some years at City,’ said the 30-year-old Serbian defender.

‘Kolo Toure is a very experienced player and had a great career in England before joining Celtic.

‘Scott Sinclair didn’t play a lot at City but he’s a great player, too.

‘And Patrick Roberts is a great talent for the future. His great strength is one-on-ones because he’s quick and can hurt you.

‘Bitton was at City as well. I know him, too. They’re all great players who are dominating up here in Scotland.

‘I don’t know Dembele very well as a player but he has scored a lot of goals in Celtic’s recent matches.

‘But we defend as a team and attack as a team and we won’t focus on stopping Dembele, Roberts or any other player.’

Kolarov expects a different Celtic team to the one crushed 7-0 by Barcelona in the Nou Camp.

‘I saw the highlights and I thought it was a strange game,’ he said. ‘Yes, they lost 7-0 but they also missed a penalty at 1-0 down.

‘I think Celtic are going to be very intense because they are at home and are wanting to win.

‘I expect them to give us a very, very difficult game. Celtic are one of the biggest teams in the UK and they are playing in front of their amazing fans.

‘But we know what to expect. We’ll be ready and we’re here to win the game.’

Kolarov played down the significance of City potentially breaking a 56-year-old English record this evening.

Should they leave Celtic Park with all three points, they will match Tottenham’s 11 consecutive wins at the start of a season set in 1960.

‘Records are nice but at the end of the season, who remembers records?’ asked Kolarov. ‘I can’t tell you the last team to win 11 games in a row but I can tell you the teams that win trophies.

‘Maybe some day a team will win 20 matches in a row but if they don’t win the title, then such records mean nothing. It’s always good to win but titles and trophies are what count.

‘At the moment, everything is going well. We started well and we’re playing in a good way.

‘But it’s just the end of September and we know some time we’re going to lose some games. That is the point where we must react.’