Alan McInally insists Celtic can take advantage of Bayern Munich’s “vulnerability” in next week’s Champions League play-off round first leg clash at Parkhead and believes the raucous atmosphere in Glasgow could spur Brendan Rodgers’ charges on to a famous result.
The Hoops have been drawn against the six-time European Cup winners for a place in the last 16 of the Champions League after both sides finished in play-off spots in the competition’s revamped league phase. Rodgers has led Celtic into the knockout phase of Europe’s premiere competition for the first time since 2012/13 and welcomes a Bayern side under the lights at Celtic Park next Wednesday that currently sit five points clear of defending German champions Bayer Leverkusen at the top of the Bundesliga.
But McInally, who won league titles with both clubs in the 1980s, reckons Bayern‘s failure to achieve a top eight finish means that an upset defeat for Vincent Kompany’s team could be on the cards. Speaking on the latest episode of the No Tippy Tappy Football Podcast with Sam Allardyce and Natalie Pike, he said: “What they [Celtic] do have in their favour is Celtic Park. I don’t care if you’ve never been to a Celtic match, if you can somehow get to Celtic Park on a Champions League night, it really is pretty special.
“And as a player, I witnessed it loads of times, it can take you through the games. They can certainly be a twelfth man.
“It will be a tough draw for Celtic, Bayern are favourites, but they didn’t make the top eight, so there’s a vulnerability there. They’re only in the playoffs. So there is as much pressure on Bayern, if not more than there is on Celtic. It’s going to be a great game, it genuinely will.”
McInally also lavished praise on boss Rodgers and reveals he briefly caught up with the Irishman following the Hoops’ 4-2 defeat to another one of his former clubs Aston Villa last week. “I’m talking about being the manager of a big football club”, he added.
“What Brendan Rogers has done at Celtic has been unbelievable, because Celtic are not afforded the luxury. You can’t even lose five against five on a Tuesday morning, you just can’t. You’ve got to be winners all the time, and look to try and do it. He’s been brilliant.
“I spoke to Brendan very briefly after the game, and he said, ‘I thought we showed a bit of character’. I thought he was right because at two-nil, they could have chucked it, they got it back to two-two, and the game was in the balance then. Obviously they had a few players out like the boy Maeda.”
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