SENTINELCELTS

Well folks, its that time again. Our annual season defining game that will dictate our schedule, our balance sheet, our next signings, and the general mood for the next 6 months or more.

Tonight LASK shall visit Celtic Park with the ultimate aim of keeping the tie alive when we visit their place in 6 days time.
Are we ready? As usual the answer is complicated.
It’s not a total no or a total yes, the answer lies somewhere in between. We are strong at the back, strong in attack, theres big players in the side with proper pedrigree, plus theres goals in the team.
Not only that we will have the twelth man effect in the biggest stadium they’ve ever played in.
We have “the” manager for a night like tonight, pulls another 12 feet high speech out of his locker.
Celtic don’t go into this battle weaponless, yet I doubt theres any among us that wanted more weapons.

Thats on the park and off it. In the EPL its often the final team on the park that wins the game, ie the subs make the desired impact. Brendan liked a bit of that, so did Ange. Martin has no such luxury, theres not much there to call upon.

Especially in the vitally important middle of the park unless the three really pull it out of the bag for 90 minutes plus. Big ask.
Especially when youre opponent naturally plays 3-5-2 and its working for them, big-time.
We wont be changing shape, tonight is not the night for an experiment. 4-3-3 it is.

We need Benji, Callum, and Baur (I presume) to perform heroics while needing heroes or a hero to emerge from the forward three. The rearguard will be called into action often I imagine and they will need to man up.

The wall of noise, our players pumped experiencing it for the first time, almost surfing on the positive waves coming from the crowd,,in no way would I dismiss this becoming our night. Read somewhere that Hassan gets a big big bonus if he helps get us through, its likely that Duran and Hogh and Baur got similar.
We have players and some cards to play.

I previously wrote that we would pump them, and we absolutely could, but that was typed before the team lost Arne and AJ plus never signed the 2nd midfielder before the true window and the wildcard window slammed shut. While frustrating as hell, I imagine the energy levels to really pick up under the floodlights when you can’t hear yourself think and as I said on Mondays article the team looked poor without energy.

Yet Duran had it the whole game and if he was surrounded by more energy that could only be a benefit in my opinion. I would stick a quid on him to score. At the weekend Baur performed the double pivot and the attacking midfielder role, I want to see more of that. Luke MacGowan is hugely important, words I rarely type, as he will most likely be involved in the most important part of the park in the most important game of the season. Who woulda thunk it?

I’m confident in this playoff not because we look like a great team, but we can do damage. We have the players to shred you at any moment, you don’t score 4 and 5 by accident. And the team who is scoring for fun, the team with a good Steamroller vibe now faces a good opponent. Fine, throw them into battle as steel sharpens steel and may the best men win.

A year ago if you asked me would we beat Lask I would have laughed at the question. Im not laughing now, they must be decent to overcome a Red Bull group side, and win a double.

But I do know there is such a thing as wrong place, wrong time.
It’s their wrong place, wrong time as far as Im concerned.
You’re not showing up here at our party and spoiling it, no Siree. Not in “his” last season now hes got even more quality lined up when we are into the CL proper. Nope, I want them shellshocked in the first leg with the second a formality (showing off our new bling and proving theres levels to this game). I don’t just want to be in the CL draw, I want to see MON romp into it with a team the supporters can believe in and that my friends is a dangerous combination, for football that is.

Up The Hoops!
By Mahe
sentinelcelts@gmail.com