Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers targets "big result" in Champions League

Published on: 30 October 2017

Brendan Rodgers' Celtic stretched their domestic run to 62 matches unbeaten on Saturday, equalling their own record

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers hopes there is "a big result" coming for his team in the Champions League.

His side face Bayern Munich on Tuesday in Group B, the German side having beaten Celtic 3-0 earlier this month.

Rodgers says Bayern are a "talented team who are set up to win the competition" but stressed his own side are improving in Europe.

"It takes time but we hope somewhere very soon we can produce a big result," Rodgers said.

"My players have shown their consistency domestically, they've shown they are growing at this level, having not been in it for a few years. We have a lot of young players that are gaining invaluable experience from it.

"We had a great performance against Man City last year, and they were doing very well. We just failed to get that victory but that's what we're searching for at this level.

"Tomorrow night we want to get a result and we have to show we have the qualities to do that. We always think we have a great chance at home."

Defender Dedryck Boyata reckons his side can go into the match in relaxed mood

Questions were asked of Rodgers' approach following the defeat in Germany, with his side having lost 5-0 at home to Paris St-Germain in their Group B opener.

And on Sunday the manager repeated his assertion that he will not abandon his style of play.

"My job is to convince the players that they can go and be competitive in how we play at that level," Rodgers added.

"That is very difficult to do because a lot of the time they are playing against players who have greater speed and whose technique is at a top level, and they've been consistently at that level for a reason.

"It's my job to convince the players we can go and play how we want to play, as oppose to sitting back - I hear this great word pragmatic that's used all the time and it normally comes from people who don't have a commitment to anything. They don't have a commitment to play a certain way, they just think you can chop and change on a daily basis. That's not the case, we look to improve our ideas of football, and those against the very best teams.

"We always have a great confidence, in particular at home in this competition."

Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata, meanwhile, insists his side have "nothing to lose" when Bayern visit Celtic Park.

The Belgian defender, 26, says the club's aim is to be involved in European football after Christmas but still feels "everything is possible", with Rodgers' men three points behind Bayern.

"We are always looking forward to playing that kind of game," Boyata said. "It's a big moment for us. We want to actually do better than we did away over there.

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"We know that over there we didn't actually play the game that we wanted to play.

"Tomorrow we have the chance to do it in front of our fans. It's a big opportunity for all the players.

"Let's be honest, we've got nothing to lose. We're playing against one of the biggest teams in Europe.

"Of course, it will be difficult. We just need to be on top of our game.

"We're playing at home. We've got three games left, two at home, one away. We know that anything can happen."

Source: bbc.com

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