ALL IN THE POST SAYS AUSSIE ACE

V Celtic 12noon

Dundee United

BY ROBERT HYNES

THE Champions League is made for Ange Postecoglou and Celtic will excel in Europe’s elite competition under the Australian.

That is the view of the Hoops boss’ fellow countryman and former

League of Ireland star Adam Hughes, who faced a number of Postecoglou’s sides Down Under as a player.

Celtic are back in the Champions League group stages for the first time in five years and have been paired with defending champions Real Madrid, as well as RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk.

There were some spirited displays from the Scottish champions in the Europa League last season before a 5-1 aggregate defeat to Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt ended their

European campaign in the Conference League back in February.

But with a proper pre-season under their belts and a much more balanced squad, Hughes believes Celtic will be a different proposition in Europe this time around.

Postecoglou’s appointment as Celtic boss raised plenty of eyebrows at the time, but former Drogheda United and Sligo Rovers midfielder Hughes (below) always believed his fellow countryman would bring success to the Glasgow giants.

He said: “Postecoglou has led the way for the country here for a long time. We’ve known about him as a top class manager for a long time.

“When he was manager of Brisbane they were playing a style of football that hadn’t been seen really in Australia before. I could see from watching and playing against them, sometimes you were just chasing shadows on the park.

“These players were of no better individual quality but it was just the style of play, the movement and the belief that he has in the players and the way he can send a team out on the park to always have that belief.

“He’s very clear with his style of play. I think he’s a fantastic manager. As you see, the way he conducts himself is top class and that’s why he has the buy-in from everyone from the board to the fans to the players.”