Celtic: A Price Paid For Spoiling The Party

A Pyrrhic Defeat

The prize money for a win on the night was a handy €1.5m, but for Celtic the more pressing calculation was avoiding a three-goal defeat. That was the simple arithmetic required to secure third place in Champions League Group B and ensure European football after Christmas. On the night, against Anderlecht at Celtic Park, a 1-0 loss proved sufficient. The result, however, told a story of a team falling well short of the standards set by the occasion.

Manager Brendan Rodgers had spoken of playing “without fear” in his programme notes, but the performance was riddled with anxiety. Celtic were poor, as poor as during any of their recent batterings against the group’s elite, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich. The visitors pressed high and dominated the ball, with Celtic players struggling to find a pass or control the ball when they did. The home side were fortunate to reach half-time at 0-0, largely thanks to a magnificent early save from Craig Gordon. The defence, particularly Dedryck Boyata, looked overwhelmed. The midfield was worse; Stuart Armstrong’s display was so erratic that his inevitable half-time substitution was a main topic of conversation.

A brief second-half improvement, sparked by substitute Olivier Ntcham, offered a glimpse of a more competitive contest. It did not last. A 62nd-minute own goal from Jozo Simunovic, heading an Appiah cross past his own goalkeeper, gave Anderlecht a deserved lead. The goal surprisingly dampened the contest, with the Belgian champions seemingly losing belief they could find the two further goals needed. Celtic’s response was limp, and the match fizzled out. For all the pre-match noise and spectacle that makes a European night at Parkhead so famous, the on-pitch display was a deflating affair, culminating in a half-hearted appreciation of a rapidly emptying stadium.

The Financial Chasm

Progress to the Europa League’s last 32 brings financial benefits and a degree of prestige, a throwback to an era when being in Europe after the new year signified a deep run in a continental competition. For clubs like Celtic, operating outside the bloated broadcast deals of leagues like the Premier League, these revenues are significant. Yet the 3-0 victory in Brussels on 27th September that ultimately secured this progression now looks like an anomaly. That result was against a managerless, clueless Anderlecht; back in Glasgow, it was Celtic who looked lost.

The performance raises difficult questions for the club’s hierarchy. Domestically, Celtic are dominant, a status reinforced by the financial advantages that Champions League qualification brings in a league with a comparatively small television deal. They sit seven points clear at the top of the Premiership with a game in hand. Internationally, they are dominated by clubs from nations with gigantic broadcast revenues. This gap seems unbridgeable. Charles Green once said he would own Rangers until he heard the Champions League music at Ibrox. Had he made that promise as Celtic’s owner, he would still be in his post.

Rodgers himself broke from his usual public praise of his players, suggesting some might mistakenly “think they are Champions League players.” His observation cuts to the heart of the problem. The club is caught in a cycle: rich enough to steamroller domestic opponents but too poor to consistently compete with the European elite. Even against another champion from a smaller league, they were comprehensively outplayed on their own pitch.

An Uncertain Path Forward

Talk of a deep run in the Europa League already seems fanciful. Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben stretched credulity by backing Celtic to go “all the way” to the final in Lyon, but after this showing, it is hard to identify an unseeded team they could confidently beat over two legs. Reinforcements are surely needed in the January transfer window, but attracting players of the requisite quality who are also eligible for the competition will be a challenge.

The sense that Celtic have improved as a European force under Rodgers evaporated on Tuesday night. Domestically, their form has also been patchy, with more Scottish teams discovering the benefits of pressing them high up the pitch. Hibernian, managed by former Celtic boss Neil Lennon, were particularly effective at this and came close to ending the club’s long unbeaten domestic run.

The structure of Champions League qualification is set to become more difficult for the “champions route” in the 2018-2021 cycle, adding another hurdle. If being thoroughly outclassed by a slick but limited Anderlecht side forces a refocussing of minds at the club, then perhaps some long-term benefit can be salvaged from the evening. But for now, the reality is stark. Celtic visit Hibernian on Sunday, where their unbeaten domestic run will reach a very Celtic-appropriate 67 games if it remains intact. A performance like Wednesday's will see it end.