Football

John McGinn Explains Why Celtic ‘Won’t have any issues’ Against Club Brugge

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2m ago

Nov 27, 2024 / 6520 Views

Evan Walker

Aston Villa captain and Scotland star John McGinn reckons that if Celtic play to the level they did against RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League last time out, they ‘won’t have any issues’ against Club Brugge tomorrow.

The Hoops welcome the Belgian champions to Parkhead on matchday five of the league phase, knowing that a win would, according to Opta’s stats, more or less secure a place in the top 24 of the table.

Celtic Players — Soccer Football – Champions League – Celtic v RB Leipzig – Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain – November 5, 2024 Celtic’s Reo Hatate celebrates scoring their third goal with Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi REUTERS/Russell Cheyne

It might be easier said than done against Brugge, however. They beat Aston Villa 1-0 in their last European game and are fresh off a 7-0 trouncing of St. Truiden in the Belgian top flight on Saturday.

McGinn, though, who played for Villa in their narrow loss to Brugge – which was decided by a penalty – thinks that although they have some tidy players, Celtic will prove too strong for the Belgians, especially at Parkhead.

The Scotland international outlined a few players who could cause the Bhoy some bother, nonetheless: “It was a tough Game”, he said (Premier Sports Scottish Football Social Club).

“They had the left winger (Christos) Tzolis who used to be at Norwich who caused us a lot of problems. They had a striker (Ferran Jutgla) who was really old-fashioned, robust and had his shorts tucked up right to his chest. He actually looked like a juniors striker but he was one of the best players on the park.

“They were organised and we couldn’t really break them down. They let us have a lot of the ball and then they broke fast. They had a really good young right-sided Ecuadorian centre back, (Joel Ordonez) he was excellent.

“But I think at home, Celtic will be too strong for them. I watched the Game against Leipzig and if they play anywhere near as good as that then I’m sure that they won’t have any issues.”

Celtic know that if they reach the levels they did against Leipzig, few teams on the continent can cope with them. Brugge are no exception to that rule.

Fans shouldn’t be too overconfident about picking up three points tomorrow evening, but if the Bhoys perform to their capabilities, then they could be looking at another famous European night.