Five talking points as Celtic hammer Slovan Bratislava in UCL opener | OneFootball

Celtic returned to the UEFA Champions League stage with a thumping opening night win over Slovan Bratislava. Brendan Rodgers’ side were excellent as they beat the Slovakian Champions 5-1, thanks to goals from Liam Scales, Kyogo, Arne Engels, Daizen Maeda and Adam Idah.

1. Five Star Celts

Celtic scored five goals as five different scorers made it onto the scoresheet. In truth, it could have been more. Kyogo squandered two chances in the first half before his positioning rewarded him with an opener. The right hand side was immense as they terrorised Bratislava. Alistair Johnston and Nicolas Kühn linked up well and worked their way into the box very well.

The only criticism is that it could have been more!

2. Electric Atmosphere

The European Nights at Paradise are world renowned and the support credited themselves with a fierce atmosphere. The Bratislava players looked uneasy during the anthem while the Celtic players were locked in, focusing. With the exception of Kasper Schmeichel, who was beaming.

Celtic Park was bouncing throughout the game as the support fed off the team on the pitch. The Green Brigade and Bhoys Celtic continued their vocal support throughout the game but plaudits must go to the GB’s 67-inspired tifo.

The home games are essential for the club’s progression and the support from the stands will help the team navigate the tricky moments as well as surging them on in the good times.

3. Arne Engels

£11m seems cheap after watching another 90 minutes of Arne Engels. The Belgian Internationalist was flawless throughout the game. His tenacity to defend, aggression in the press and quality on the ball was clear to see. He was unlucky not to earn MOTM for his display but he won’t begrudge Scales for winning that accolade.

The win tonight (worth €2.1m) will take a chunk out of the fee paid to the German club. Maybe there is something in this upper bracket of transfer fee nonsense after all…

4. Brendan

The manager was delighted with the result and praised his players for their efforts. However, in his media conference, Rodgers showed his ambition and determination to continue the club’s upward trajectory as he critiqued aspects of the game. The Irishman wants success at the club and to see him relishing these moments shows that the only way is up.

5. Onto Victory

After last season’s encouraging performances that didn’t quite result in points on the board, Celtic started the new-look campaign looking to secure a win in their first game. The Celts certainly did that and will look forward to their next game, a trip to Germany to face last season’s finalists, Borussia Dortmund. The intensity that Celtic had from the starting XI and the subs showed the quality and depth that the manager has spoken about for some time. The benefit to this has been clear to see, especially from Scales, who has taken his game up a level since the arrival of Auston Trusty from Sheffield United.