It’s going to be a test of Celtic’s mental strength as they prepare to welcome Dundee United on Saturday afternoon.
Days after the main event, where Celtic were beaten 2-1 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League, it’s the small matter of domestic action and extending that 13-point lead at the top of the Premiership table.
Everyone is aware of how the Dundee United game is going to pan out because it’s going to be one-way traffic and Brendan Rodgers’ side dominating the ball.
That’s the norm for Celtic, being on the front foot, aggressive and creating chance after chance, but that wasn’t the case against Bayern Munich.
That’s understandable because you are facing the Bundesliga leaders and a team some are backing to win the Champions League this season.
But Stiliyan Petrov wasn’t too happy with what he was seeing against Bayern.
Stiliyan Petrov admits to being ‘uncomfortable’ watching Celtic vs Bayern Munich
As everybody expected, before kick-off, Celtic fans were in full voice and You’ll Never Walk Alone was being belted around Parkhead.
But Petrov felt that the atmosphere for ‘big periods’ of the game was flat and not your typical European night in Glasgow.
The former midfielder contributed Celtic’s defensive approach as a big reason behind that and how he felt it was ‘uncomfortable’ because this is something you rarely see, as he told the Warm Up.
“My concern against Bayern Munich was the approach,” admitted Petrov. “Celtic started defending and they were just going deeper and deeper. This isn’t something that Celtic do.
“It’s something that you are taking your players out of their comfort zone. When you dominate 95% of the games domestically, and some of the Champions League performances as well, then you are asking your players to defend and do things that you don’t usually do.
“It’s unconformable. I don’t think Celtic feel comfortable defending and doing that much defending throughout the game. I just think they should go and play their football.
“You are playing at home. This is something I felt with the fans. The atmosphere just died for big periods of the game because there was nothing to excite them.
“Usually, Celtic is on the front foot, they are creating chances and scoring goals. But against Bayern, they were waiting for something to change.
Celtic’s stats against Bayern Munich
Remember the Dortmund horror show? Celtic have come a long way since then and, it’s not just displayed in the results, but the performances also.
Yes, it took time for Celtic to get going, but when they did and Daizen Maeda scored, you could sense and feel that Bayern were just eager for the final whistle to blow.
Despite the home side taking up until the second half to get going, they still managed to produce a higher xG than their opponent.
Not only that, Celtic’s 140 forward passes compared to Bayern’s 167, wasn’t the stark difference to the negative approach some thought Rodgers took.
