Gary Lineker admits he had to consider Celtic among the Champions League dark horses – even if that feels ‘weird’ after their hammering against Borussia Dortmund.
Brendan Rodgers‘ team were electric in a 5-1 hammering of Slovan Bratislava on opening day but their green in the goal difference column was wiped out, and then some, when Dortmund put seven past them in Germany. It was looking like the same old story for Celtic in Europe, until they went to Atalanta, turned in a defensive masterclass, and came away from their first three games with four points to show for it.
Given they started with a winnable home tie and two decidedly-unwinnable away fixtures, four points is a creditable return and leaves the Hoops 20th in the Champions League table, a position more than good enough to seal knockout football in the new format. Lineker was asked about the ‘surprise packages’ of the tournament so far, and table-topping Aston Villa as well as high-flying Brest were the obvious answers. But Celtic were the other team that caught his eye.
He said on The Rest is Football podcast: “Villa, three wins from three, you’d have to say them. The three English teams are top, aren’t they, with Manchester City and Liverpool as well. So I’d say Brest, the team in France, who are going really well. Two wins and a draw, which is, I think, pretty impressive.
“Celtic, in a weird way, considering they actually got battered in one game, seven (against Dortmund), they’ve got four points from the other two games. That gives them a chance of being, probably realistically, in the middle block.”