Callum McGregor says he’s eagerly anticipating Celtic’s Champions League test against Dortmund on Tuesday and insists the team travel with confidence and a desire for a “shockwave” result.
The Scottish champions have enjoyed a strong start to the season, including a 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava in the opening match of the league phase, but will face their biggest challenge when they take on last season’s finalists.
Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park is widely acknowledged as one of the finest arenas in the game and silencing the home support will just add to the scale of the task ahead of Brendan Rodgers and his players.
As Celtic captain, McGregor will lead the team out into that cauldron of noise and he says nights like that are why everyone wants to be in the Champions League.
“Obviously we’re looking forward to it,” he told STV. “It’s one of the iconic stadiums around the world.
“That’s what the Champions League gives you, the chance to play in these stadiums against a top team that got to the final last year.
“They started the campaign well so we know it’ll be a strong test.”
Celtic’s 5-1 win over Slovan has lifted hopes among the support that they can have a memorable season in Europe after suffering disappointments in recent years. That impressive opening performance, alongside a flawless start to the domestic season, means spirits are high and McGregor says the team believe in what they are doing.
“Off the back of our game, we go there with confidence,” he said. “We want to play the right way, attack the game and see where we end up.
“We have to attack the games with belief in the way that we want to play the game. There’s been a real good building block for about 12 months now. There’s a real good profile [to the squad] and the team are looking in good shape.
“Confidence is high so we have to try to be ourselves and go and take the game to Dortmund. We’ll go and try to get a positive result.”
Despite Celtic’s own form, a trip to Dortmund remains one of European football’s more difficult challenges. McGregor says targeting headlines with wins like that is part of the experience.
“That’s what the Champions League is about: trying to send shockwaves through the competition,” he said.
“Of course we know it’s going to be hugely difficult, they’ve got some real top, top players. There’s real speed at the top end as well, so we have to be careful in transition.
“But we want to go and rest ourselves against these guys and with confidence to see what we can do.”
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
