Home belief puts Brown in the mood for a battle
WHEN a Spanish manager arrives in town at the head of his own international brigade, the volume on the Battle of Britain war cry is inevitably screwed down a notch or two.
Yet just because the modern-day Manchester City have now become the epitome of a rich man’s play thing, the Scottish spine of Brendan Rodgers’ side will need no reminding of the added significance of locking horns from a side stationed on the other side of Hadrian’s Wall tonight.
For Scott Brown, playing down the significance of the Scottish Premiership leaders pitting their wits against their Sassenach equivalents would be an exercise in futility. Rarely are the stakes so high.
Of equal billing in the mind of the Celtic skipper, is the importance of preserving Celtic Park’s reputation as one of the continent’s most impregnable fortresses.
Tonight will be the 25th time the old place has staged a group game in the Champions League over 15 years. Of the previous 24, 16 were won with just three lost to Barcelona (twice) and AC Milan.
By any stretch of the imagination, it’s a formidable record. A reputation, in Brown’s view, that’s worth going to war for.
Asked if the Scotland-England dynamic lent another dimension to tonight’s Group C clash, Brown (below) replied: ‘Yes, but the reputation of Celtic Park, as well.
‘We have played some great teams here but we have done well. We have dug deep and got some good results. It’s been hard, sometimes we have lost late goals, but we have always believed in ourselves — especially at home.’
The names of those to have left vanquished over the years is remarkable; Juventus, Manchester United, Milan, Barcelona and Porto to name but five. The odds on Pep Guardiola’s latest project joining that list seems slim, even if Rodgers’ side bring their A-game.
If the Scots have even a trace of 7-0 drubbing in the Nou Camp in their system, the result is surely a foregone conclusion.
‘We’ve got to work hard as a team and we’re going to have to defend a lot better than we did in the last game,’ he warned.
‘We have got to be composed on the ball and take our chances when they come along.
‘We sat off Barcelona and they showed what good players can do to you if you stand off them.
‘So now we need to get our bodies in and try to win the individual battles.’
The theory is straightforward. The practice of Celtic imposing themselves on a side that have won 10 straight games, straddling three competitions, less so.
Respect for an opponent is one thing. Perhaps even mandatory. Somehow, though, a balance must be found between that and Celtic talking themselves out of the contest before a ball is kicked.
‘You can’t take all that in,’ Brown said of the eye-watering finances at the Etihad. ‘You need to sit back, realise the style they are playing, their formations, how they start attacks and, hopefully, see how we can defend it. If we start going into depth about all that (money), then it’s panic stations.
‘You kind of know all you need to know about Man City. You see them on the telly and watch the videos.
‘It’s a different style of play. It’s kind of the same style as our gaffer has brought into us. He wants the goalie to pass from the back, start attacks and that’s what they do.’
There will be no mourning for absent friends. ‘I’m quite glad (Kevin) de Bruyne’s out. He’s decent!’ smiled Brown.
‘He’s a top player. I played against him for Scotland and he’s the one who starts the pressing for City.
‘But then City have got so many great players — they’ve got (Raheem) Sterling, (Sergio) Aguero... just about everybody!’
By common consent, Brown could be squaring up to such company on a weekly basis had he chosen to do so. Chances to move to England were there if he wanted to take them earlier in his career. Remaining at Celtic was a matter of choice.
On such nights as these, then, motivation is not in short supply.
‘It’s what the Champions League is all about,’ he explained. ‘It’s about playing the best players in your position and, hopefully, you end up top individually and as a team at the end.’