Gary Hooper unimpressed with Braga and believes Celtic can win 4-0

IN A manner befitting someone who may be asked to lead a Champions League cavalry charge for Celtic tomorrow night, Gary Hooper lacks nothing in the way of bullish optimism about the task ahead.

The striker had to watch from the sidelines in Portugal last Wednesday as his new team-mates slumped to a 3-0 defeat in the first leg of their third qualifying round tie. Hooper, who completed his 2.4 million transfer from Scunthorpe United the day before, shared in the frustration of a result which hugely lengthened the odds on Celtic reaching the play-off round of Europe's elite club competition.

But the 22-year-old Englishman also believes he saw significant defensive weaknesses in Braga which can be fully exploited in the return fixture at Celtic Park.

Hooper, who marked his first appearance in Celtic colours with a goal in the 2-2 draw with Lyon at the Emirates Cup in London on Saturday, is desperate for manager Neil Lennon to hand him prime responsibility in pursuing the goals required to effect a dramatic turnaround.

Braga's central defenders, Peruvian international Alberto Rodriguez and the Brazilian Moises, barely required to break sweat in the Estadio AXA last week when Celtic managed just one attempt on target.

As he braces himself for his competitive debut, however, Hooper is confident he can unsettle a pairing which left him distinctly unimpressed."Watching it last week, I was thinking I would love to get at them," he said. "Their defenders weren't the biggest or the strongest. They are good on the ball, but if we press them, I think they will give it away a lot.

"They won't be used to the British style of game. They are used to having time on the ball and passing it around. But if we get in their faces, we can definitely win the tie. There's every chance. If we press them high up the pitch, we will score goals. If we score early, we will go on to win 4-0. If we cut the mistakes out, which happen at every team, we can go for it. It should really have been 1-0 at the most for Braga over there. We have got nothing to lose and I think we have the midfielders in the team to set up the chances and the strikers to take them. Obviously, I'm hoping to start the match and get on the scoresheet. It's up to the gaffer. I had my first 90 minutes against Lyon on Saturday. The main thing was my fitness, but getting the goal was a little bonus."

Hooper was speaking as he promoted sales of tickets for tomorrow night's match which is a season-ticket fixture but is not being televised live.

Despite expressing his enthusiasm at the prospect of playing in front of a full house at Celtic Park, that is an experience Hooper is likely to have to wait a little longer for. Nonetheless, he believes the home support, however many they number, can have a significant influence in helping Celtic's bid to overturn their deficit."The crowd can be massive for us," said Hooper. "We need them at our backs. If we score one, then Braga won't be able to get out of their half. I don't think Braga will be used to that. I'm not used to it, but I have to take it in and enjoy the experience.I've never been to Parkhead when it's full. The biggest crowd I've played in front of so far was at Wembley last year for Scunthorpe in the League One play-off final where there was just under 60,000.

"The Celtic fans at the Emirates at the weekend were the loudest in the whole ground. Even when Arsenal scored against us on Sunday, they were still behind us. Braga might be scared and we have to be ready to take advantage."

Hooper admits he is still coming to terms with his elevation from relative obscurity to the higher profile demands of playing for Celtic. "I don't think it has hit me yet," he said. "To think I was playing for Grays Athletic five years ago and now I've got the chance to play in the Champions League. I think it will hit me on Wednesday morning when I wake up. It will be the biggest day I've ever woken up to. My family are coming up for the game and it should be fun."