No way we will take our foot off the gas
SAYS CRAIG GORDON
IN the aftermath of the League Cup Final victory over Aberdeen last month, the common theme among those Celtic players eulogising about Brendan Rodgers’ impact since coming to the club was his repeated stressing of the need to be relentless in pursuit of success.
Now just six games shy of reaching the winter break undefeated domestically, it’s clear the Celtic manager’s words have been embraced in the manner he would have hoped.
For all the parallels that have been drawn with the first season of the Martin O’Neill era, Rodgers’ team are already two points better off at this juncture.
If that in itself is a sobering thought for the chasing pack, there is also much to suggest that the task of knocking the champions off their pedestal may be about to get even more difficult.
Come January, Rodgers and his side will head to Dubai for an eight-day warm-weather training camp designed as much for rest and rehabilitation as it is to facilitate better quality sessions. There is also every chance one or two blue-chip additions could be on board by then.
Once hostilities resume with a Scottish Cup tie with Albion Rovers on January 21, Celtic will view the remainder of the campaign without concerns over fatigue following European matches.
It says much about the attention to detail of Rodgers and his backroom team that league points were only spilled once after a European match (a 2-2 draw with Inverness after a 7-0 defeat to Barca) but Celtic’s elimination from continental action means that is one less thing to worry about.
While talk of the Treble and remaining invincible in the process is being laced with caution, there is a determination to continue to carry out the manager’s instructions to the letter by keeping the foot down.
‘Europe is gone now but there’s a huge amount to play for,’ said keeper Craig Gordon. ‘This is a big month for us and there are a lot of games. It’s an opportunity to put a lot of points on the board. We won’t be easing off because we want to really force home our advantage.’
Eight points clear of Rangers but with three games in hand, it would take a brave man to bet against Rodgers’ side wrapping up the title before the split comes into view.
Hamilton, who come to Celtic Park tomorrow, would surely trump their legendary victory of October 2014 were they somehow to emerge victorious.
Because while Rodgers’ men were unable to perform a Houdini-like escape from their Champions League group, they still showed themselves to be competitors rather than participants at that level.
‘We’re more confident now,’ Gordon added. ‘We keep the ball an awful lot better than we did in that first game in the Nou Camp. The manager has been relentless with us to make sure we are improving all of the time.
‘There’s been a huge amount of hard work on the training ground from him and the coaching staff to make sure we do improve.
‘I think people could see that we got better all the time. It’s such fine margins at that level and that’s something we will take forward for next time.’
By the time Rodgers’ side left Manchester City’s Etihad last Tuesday with a deserved closing point, the memory of that sevengoal hiding to Barcelona on match day one was ever more distant.
If last week’s level of performance is replicated domestically, talk of a clean sweep without losing will only grow.
‘We played well,’ said Gordon. ‘We kept the ball well and managed to play out and got through them on occasions. We created plenty of chances and could have won it.
‘It was a positive end to the campaign. A lot of people thought we’d be lucky to get one point in our group let alone three but there’s a disappointment it’s not more. If you look at some of the moments in the games, we could have had more points on the board.
‘We missed a few chances that could have turned some of those draws into three points and that would have made a huge difference.
‘We were close — it certainly felt like we were not far away. If we can continue playing like we did in Manchester and continuing to improve, then there’s a good opportunity to, hopefully, do well in the competition next year.’
While failing to win a game for the first time in the competition, Celtic, in many respects, did better than many anticipated. Amid it all, a game for the ages stood out.
‘The 3-3 draw against Man City was probably the highlight for me,’ recalled Gordon. ‘The atmosphere at Celtic Park was special. That game gave us the springboard to believe we belonged at that level.
‘Most of the boys hadn’t witnessed something like that before. We’d heard about the big Champions League nights and there were some great atmospheres in previous European games, like Inter Milan, but nothing like that night against Man City.
‘It was another level and, once you get a sample of that, it just makes you hungry to get it again.
‘It’s been hard work and some disappointments, but there were some enjoyable moments along the way and, as a group, we learned from the experience.
‘The Champions League was everything I hoped. It’s great to go away in the knowledge we can play at that level.
‘When we started this campaign, there weren’t many who had tasted Champions League football but now we all have — and it will make us stronger.
‘We have the confidence to compete against these sides and we all have that ambition to get back again.’
“We really want to force home our advantage”