Alistair Johnston’s Celtic Champions League rallying cry

Alistair Johnston has insisted that Celtic’s League Cup thrashing of Falkirk under the lights was perfect preparation for their Champions League showdown this Wednesday against Kairat Almaty.

The Canada international was one of Celtic’s standout performers last Friday, scoring the second goal in his club’s 4-1 defeat of Falkirk in the Premier Sports Cup.

Now, all eyes have turned to the Play-Off qualifier against the Kazakhstan champions, who get set to participate in what many have described as the biggest game in their history. For Johnston, Falkirk provided the perfect dress rehearsal for the club’s midweek endeavours.

“I think that that was exactly what we needed,” he said. “It’s a bit of a different atmosphere, a bit of a different feel with a night game. It reminded everyone that this is what it’s going to feel like. It prepared us well for what’s to come. The pressure is going to come with a massive two-legged tie.”

“For the new guys that have come to the squad, there’s that hunger. They’re not really understanding what it is; they’ve heard of it, but they haven’t felt it. It’s a great moment whenever you get to play at Celtic Park under the lights on a Champions League night.

“That’s something that is now our task over this next week and a half – to go out and make sure we guarantee a whole League Phase out of it. It’s not going to be easy.”

Johnston’s passionate comments were one of the main focuses of today’s morning briefing for Monday, August 18. John and Ryan spoke about European competition, as well as the lack of signings, ahead of the deadline tomorrow night.