Celtic’s Thomas Rogne eyes Champions League knockout phase

IT IS perhaps simply an accurate measure of lowered expecations in Scottish football that Celtic’s goalless stalemate at home to Benfica on Matchday One of the Champions League was so widely hailed in a positive light.

So sobering has been the consistent level of failure in European competitions by Scottish clubs in recent years, the benchmark for perceived success has been significantly diminished.

Reaching the group stage of the Champions League for the first time in four years has been regarded as an achievement in itself for Celtic. As the fourth seeds in Group G, anything other than finishing bottom of the pile will amount to punching above their current weight in European terms.

But Neil Lennon, as he stressed in the build-up to Wednesday night’s match, is not content just to make up the numbers in the elite tournament. From the moment the draw pitted his team against Barcelona, Benfica and Spartak Moscow, the Celtic manager declared that qualification for the last 16 was “do-able”.

To fulfil that ambition, or even to finish third in the group and earn the considerable consolation prize of a place in the last 32 of the Europa League beyond Christmas, it will take much more than 0-0 draws on their own patch.

Lennon described it as a “decent start” against a Benfica side with notable recent pedigree in the Champions League. Of Celtic’s starting 11, only captain Scott Brown had any previous experience of group stage football in the competition. It was also new territory for Lennon as a manager, making the satisfaction he expressed after the game perfectly understandable.

But there is still a sense that it may prove to have been something of a missed opportunity for Celtic in the final analysis. For it was a Benfica side who appeared less than stellar during what, for long spells, was a generally low-grade encounter by Champions League standards.

Only four of the Benfica starting line-up were survivors of the side which lost to eventual champions Chelsea in last season’s quarter-finals. In particular, Celtic may reflect a little ruefully on their failure to place the Portuguese team’s defence under greater pressure.

With captain Luisao and Uruguayan full-back Maxi Pereira suspended, Benfica were forced to field a largely inexperienced back four. Full-backs Andre Almeida and Lorenzo Melgarejo were both making their Champions League debuts, while it was only a fourth outing at this level for central defender Jardel. Brazilian goalkeeper Artur did not have a save of note to make, while at the other end Fraser Forster was forced into a couple of crucial interventions.

There is little doubt that Benfica coach Jorge Jesus was highly satisfied to leave Glasgow with a point in the circumstances, despite his claim that his team should have won a game in which they managed more attempts on goal than their hosts.

For Celtic, the task now is to build on the recent improvement in their away form in Europe which Lennon has worked so hard to achieve over the past year. Unbeaten in their last four games on the road, that resilience is likely to face a stern test on Matchday Two when they take on Spartak Moscow in the Russian capital on 2 October.

In losing just 3-2 to Barcelona in the Nou Camp on Wednesday, with former Celtic winger Aiden McGeady having an eye-catching role in the goal which put them 2-1 ahead at one stage, Spartak served notice of the threat they will pose.

But Celtic are entitled to approach the assignment with just a little more confidence and ambition, having at least gained an early foothold in the group.

“It was important not to lose against Benfica,” reflected defender Thomas Rogne. “It was a good performance. We wanted to test their goalkeeper a bit more maybe, but defensively we did well. One point is a lot more than nothing. We should be happy with the performance. It was a good start for us.

“Benfica are a decent team. We knew it was going to be tough. It is the first game for most of us in the Champions League. We are probably going to have to get some points away from home if we are going to go through. That’s an aim for us now.

“We came through the qualifying rounds with two good away wins in Helsinki and Helsingborg, so hopefully we can keep that going. The history of Celtic away from home in the Champions League does not count for much now. This is a new team.

“I think second place in this group is up for grabs. I think we showed today that we can cope with a really good team. Hopefully, next time, we can test the goalkeeper a bit more as well.

“But we can definitely finish as runners-up in the group. Nothing has changed after this game. Indeed, we believe more than we did before the game maybe. We showed that we can do well. We still have players to come back in. There were some players injured for this game. We have a good squad at the moment.

“We have players who can play well in different positions. Charlie Mulgrew started as a left midfielder and Mikael Lustig stepped in at centre half. We have players who can play all over the pitch. That’s a good thing for us.”