Martin O'Neill reveals the Celtic job hate Ange Postecoglou has managed to avoid ahead of Champions League bow
dailyrecord.co.ukMartin O’Neill reckons Ange Postecoglou will have to deal with the surging levels of expectation going into his second season in charge of Celtic.
But the heightened demands are still a lot more appealing than having to deal with Champions League qualifiers.The Parkhead legend believes direct entry in to the group stages of European football’s top competition is a game changer for his old club in a number of ways.O’Neill admitted he used to despise going in to the brutal qualifying stages with one hand tied behind his back.
It’s 20 years since he started Celtic on their way on the memorable run to the UEFA Cup Final in Seville. But it’s also two decades on since he had to suffer the Champions League exit at the first hurdle.
The charge across the continent helped Hoops fans forget about the defeat to Basel in the play-off, but the pain lingered for the manager who was determined to get back to the top table having dealt with Ajax at the same stage 12 months earlier.It’s all a hassle any Celtic manager can do without and leapfrogging the lottery of qualifications will be a weight off for Postecoglou – and it will also help with his summer recruitment drive.The prospect of traipsing across the continent in July doesn’t sound much fun to some – including O’Neill.He said: “They got straight in to the Champions League group stage.
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