Neil Lennon: Euro rivals Nomme Kalju may be ‘tough nut to crack’

On the basis of odds as long as 90-1 available to anyone who believes Nomme Kalju are capable of causing a shock at Celtic Park tonight, the unheralded Estonian club appear unlikely to seriously threaten Neil Lennon’s bid to return to the group stage of the Champions League.
Lewis Morgan during Celtic training at Lennoxtown.Lewis Morgan during Celtic training at Lennoxtown.
Lewis Morgan during Celtic training at Lennoxtown.

But the Celtic manager has more than enough experience of the relentless and ever more congested nature of the qualifying process for Europe’s elite club tournament to appreciate it is seldom that straightforward.

Even before Lennon’s players face off against the Estonian champions in the first leg of their second qualifying round tie, they learned that either Cluj of Romania or Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv would await them in the next stage.

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Lennon freely admits it is difficult for him to be as well briefed about any of Celtic’s opponents at this stage of the campaign as he would like, given the breathless scheduling of the four ties which must be negotiated to reach the group stage.

He and his staff have gathered what intelligence they can on Nomme Kalju, who upset the odds by winning in Macedonia to defeat Shkendija on away goals in the first qualifying round.

But Lennon will largely trust in the acumen and experience of his players to suss out Nomme Kalju as quickly as possible on the pitch as they look to build a 
commanding advantage before next Tuesday’s second leg in Tallinn. “It’s difficult to gauge how Nomme Kalju compare to Sarajevo who we beat in the first round,” said Lennon. “They had a great result in Macedonia, that was pretty unexpected really. The two goals Shkendija scored over the two legs were both penalties, so Nomme Kalju might be a tough nut to crack.

“I felt Sarajavo were a decent side for opposition at this stage of the campaign. But, again, we are well prepared in terms of our training and we know how important the tie is. It would be great if we could get some sort of decent and substantial lead to take over to Estonia next week.

“We are having the game between Cluj and Maccabi watched on Wednesday, we have people going out to the game and we will get a full report and obviously a lot of footage. We are familiar with both of the teams – but again it’s far better to watch them in the flesh. But it’s impossible at this stage of the season.

“It’s like watching a player you might want to sign – you see them on screen and they look brilliant and then you see them in the flesh and it’s different. And sometimes you see teams on TV and you think, ‘we should be okay here,’ but you see them live and, all of a sudden, you realise you have a game on.

“So, yeah, that can be dangerous in these qualifiers. You just try to prepare the team as best as you possibly can – and the players also get a feel for it. After five minutes, they work out strengths and weaknesses and the physical side of the game as well, what pace the game’s going to be at.

“We’ve got good experience in the team now to do that. Scott Brown, Callum McGregor, James Forrest and even the likes of Jozo Simunovic, they are experienced European players now. You would like to think there is a good core of them who can read the opposition quickly. Even Ryan Christie to a certain extent. They have played a lot of games at this level now.”

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Lennon’s selection options are boosted by the return to full training of Mikey Johnson, Marian Shved, Vakoun Bayo and Eboue Kouassi, while longer term absentees Kieran Tierney and Tom Rogic remain unavailable.

Tonight may offer another opportunity for Lewis Morgan to press his claims for a regular place in Lennon’s plans this season. The Scotland international midfielder made his first competitive starting appearance at Celtic Park in the 2-1 win over Sarajevo last week.

Morgan, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Sunderland, is determined to challenge the perception that he is likely to be surplus to immediate requirements again for the Scottish champions this campaign.

“I haven’t entertained talk of another loan,” said the 22-year-old. “I take every day as it comes, but I am not thinking about anything other than Celtic at the moment and making my mark here. I was delighted to get back into the team for the game last week. I want to be a regular feature in the side.

“It has taken a lot of hard work to get to the stage where I made my first start at Celtic Park. I’m just delighted the manager had that faith in me and hopefully I repaid him with my performance. I just make sure that I am positive and I am direct. That is what he is wanting from me. There is loads of competition for places here. ”

“This is the pinnacle, the Champions League. We are taking every game as it comes and the goal is to get into the group stages. We have got a big game again and hopefully Celtic Park will be packed out again.”