Let’s start with some nice stuff.
Yes, Celtic may have left Villa Park on Wednesday night on the wrong end of a beating but a ballsy Battle of Britain performance from Brendan Rodgers and his players was deemed enough for significant praise to be thrown Celtic’s way. If that’s not your particular bag then simply skip to the end. There’s plenty of the other, not so gushing stuff in there too.
First up Parkhead fan Stephen Mulhearn, Dumbarton, made a serious point. He said: “The importance of Cameron Carter-Vickers was emphasised once more against Villa. The positive for me though was Adam Idah producing a fabulous performance and showing there is life after Kyogo. I’m looking forward to a mouthwatering tie going head to head with hopefully Real Madrid in what promises to be an unbelievable fixture.”
Kenny Wilson, Moffat, added: “What a game at Villa Park – a great spectacle. I thought it was going to be Dortmund all over again after five mins but Celtic showed great character to get back level at half-time. Villa were the better team and deserved their win but a glamour tie awaits and it’s been a great campaign. Although let’s be honest we won’t progress any further.”
Paul McCormack, Coatbridge, agreed: “What looked like a re-run of Dortmund after the first few minutes actually turned into a good showing for Celtic against an excellent Villa side – with three of our main players missing.
“An absolute battering was eventually turned more of a bloodied nose with Idah’s much needed two goals. This team is definitely maturing in Europe.”
And Ayr’s Gordon Ashley took a wider view saying: “Rivalries aside, although defeats for the Glasgow teams, a proud performance by both. Rangers came up against a Man Utd team who are historically one of England’s biggest clubs and Aston Villa are currently top eight in the EPL. Both were taken all the way to injury time away from home by two Scottish teams under strength and fielding youngsters. It’s a massive box ticked for our game. We are no farmers’ league!”
Had enough sugar already? OK, here comes the pivot. First Neil Renton, Leith, said: “Yet again Celtic fans damage the reputation of Scottish fans by throwing smoke bombs on the pitch, this time against Aston Villa. Never mind away fans being banned from games, they’re lucky they’re not thrown out of the competition altogether.”
Next up George Wilson, West Sussex. He wrote: “Celtic were kept in Europe after Xmas for a change after being given a bye into the next stages by the reorganisation of the Champions League where nearly everyone qualifies. They were also handed nine points, given the easiest of home draws against three of the worst teams in the competition. They were totally hammered when up against proper Champions League teams like Villa and Dortmund. So that’s the end of the road again for them as there will be no more free hits.”
Andrew Lamb, Fraserburgh, said: “I was one of many last night who took great delight in seeing Celtic put in their place, not to mention Scottish Football. All mouth, little substance. “Has anyone seen Celtic since the second half?”
Craig Watson, Drumley, chipped in: “I see the Scottish media already over hyping Celtic facing either Real Madrid or Bayern. I fail to see the big deal, Aberdeen previously swatted both aside in the space of a couple of months.” And Chris Lowe, Yoker, said: “Congratulations Celtic. Two away wins in 33 years in the Champions League whilst having a team full of £20 million rated players. An amazing achievement. If only they could take Scottish officials with them into Europe.”
Which brings us back to Tannadice on Sunday. John Scott, Grassmoor, has the final say: “Nick Walsh has taken some stick this week, hasn’t he? There’s no disputing he can be a bit pedantic but, come on, what a job to take on, trying to stop professional players acting like kids on a playground. The player at the centre of the red card storm went down earlier in the game clutching his broken leg, then miraculously jumped up stomping because the ref didn’t send off the United player. ‘Embarrassing!’ cried Kris Boyd. Perhaps – but it wasn’t just Nick Walsh was it Kris?”
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