When the draw for the second round of Champions League qualifying was done, Celtic fans were probably confident heading into a two-legged tie against the champions of Gibraltar, Lincoln Red Imps.
After all, despite a 14-year run of domestic titles in Gibraltar’s 10-team first division, the gap in talent between the two teams is a considerable one.
But a 1-0 win on home soil for the Red Imps last week means that Celtic need a result to stay in the Champions League when the teams meet today at Parkhead (2:45 p.m. ET).
The visitors are 25-to-1 underdogs today, which is understandable when you consider that two of the team’s starters had to take vacation time off from their day jobs to make the trip. The captain, Roy Chipolina, is a customs officer and last week’s goal scorer, Lee Casciaro, is a policeman.
The result last week has put new manager Brendan Rodgers already under immediate pressure, but the former Liverpool and Swansea manager is putting on a brave face.
“I am aware the supporters want to get through,” he said. “That’s the most important thing. These games are always built up as walkovers but there are not too many of them in modern football. It doesn’t matter who the bodies are, if they work in a bank or not, if you have 11 people behind a ball and they are fit enough they can make it very difficult for you.”
In an effort to return the Scottish giants to the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2013, Rodgers is facing a bit of an injury issue in defense, with center backs Jozo Simunovic and Dedryck Boyata unavailable because of injury.
“It’ll be a different game from last week,” Lincoln assistant manager (and marketing manager for a Toyota dealership) Mick McElwee says. “We can assume there will be a great reaction from Celtic; I’m sure they’ll come out all guns blazing and Brendan Rodgers will want them to press us high up the pitch. That will give us space in behind though. I know it’s a cliché, but we’re looking forward to it. Where else would we want to be?”
Celtic will look to shake off the disappointment of last week’s result and put this match away early. Look for the Scottish champions to try to overwhelm the Red Imps early on, and use the atmosphere at Parkhead to try to rattle the visitors.
Lincoln, on the other hand, will try to keep things tight and look for openings on the counter and on set pieces. That said, it will take a massive upset for the Red Imps to leave Scotland with a place in the next round of Champions League qualifying.
Of course, if last week’s result taught us anything, it’s that anything is possible out on the pitch.
