THE Champions League has proved to be a problematic competition for Celtic in the past couple of seasons and victories have, despite laudable displays against the likes of Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Lazio, been hard to come by.
There promise to be, with league phase games against Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta, RB Leipzig and Aston Villa coming up in the months ahead, some difficult encounters and a few low moments for the Scottish champions again this term.
But one of the biggest challenges which Brendan Rodgers might face after an emphatic opening win – the first they have managed in no fewer than 13 attempts - over Slovan Bratislava at Parkhead last night will be tempering the heightened expectations of supporters.
Celtic’s jubilant followers danced out of the stadium at the end of the 90 minutes believing, with no little justification, that this might just be the year when they do a more than make up numbers.
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Rodgers baulked at suggestions that the Slovakians would be easy opening opponents both when the draw was made earlier this month and at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday evening.
He pointed to the fact that Vladimir Weiss’s men had successfully negotiated four ties and eight games – they had overcome Struga of Macedonia, NK Celje of Slovenia, Apoel Nicosia of Cyprus and Midtjyllandd of Denmark – to make it through to the Champions League proper for the first time in their history.
He would, too, have been well aware that wily old warhorse Weiss had masterminded the infamous 5-0 win which Artmedia Bratislava recorded against his boyhood heroes in a qualifier back in 2005.
But Celtic dominated from the first minute to the last and would have won by even more had it not been for Dominik Takac. The goalkeeper denied Daizen Maeda, Arne Engels and Kyogo Furuhashi in the first half and Engels and Alistair Johnston in the second.
The atmosphere at Parkhead on Champions League nights is rightly renowned around the world. Some superstars of the global game, normally after they have enjoyed a comfortable win, have raved about it. The home supporters certainly cranked up the decibel levels a notch or two before hostilities commenced.
There was a rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone which would have brought a tear to a glass eye before the teams emerged from the tunnel and that raised expectation levels around the ground tangibly.
The Green Brigade normally produce something a little special for these occasions and they did not disappoint. Giant banners were unfurled from the top tier before kick-off. One read “Last Night As I Lay Dreaming”. The other showed two of the Lisbon Lions lying in bed with the European Cup in between them with a teddy bear in it the morning after their win over Inter Milan in 1967.
On the last occasion that Vladimir Weiss Jnr, the son of the Slovan manager and the Bratislava captain, had played at Parkhead back in 2010 he came on as Rangers romped to a 3-1 victory. The away win ultimately ensured they clinched a third consecutive Scottish title the following year.
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The home supporters had clearly not forgotten or forgiven. Every time the winger got on the ball he was booed and jeered. There was uproar when he cleaned out Engels shortly after Liam Scales had broken the deadlock. He could have no complaints about being booked by referee Danny Makkelie for his bad-tempered lunge.
Weiss, who won a double during the season he spent on loan in Govan from Manchester City, never quite managed to scale the heights which many thought him capable of as a youngster.
But there is another wonderkid on the block now and on the evidence of his performance against Slovan he is destined for great things.
Engels is still just 20 and was only making his second start for the club he joined in the final hours of the summer transfer window last month. But there was a reason that Celtic broke their transfer record to land the Belgium midfielder. The £11m signing looks capable of making his new club far more of a force on the continent.
His dipping corner allowed Scales to become the first Irishman to score in the Champions League since Darron Gibson did so for Manchester United way back in 2011. But he came very close to netting powerful first-time shots himself. And his general play impressed greatly too.
He was not in the slightest bit overawed by the enormity of the match, tried to get on the ball constantly, got forward frequently, showed great vision and played a few defence-piercing through balls to his new team mates. To cap an assured personal showing, he stepped up and coolly converted a penalty to make it 3-0. Believe the hype, this kid is the real deal.
How much more influential, though, will Engels become as he settles into his new surroundings? It is a tantalising prospect for Celtic supporters. As is taking on last season’s beaten finalists Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion in Germany on Tuesday week.
Rodgers is certainly looking forward to working with the new recruit. "It was a great identification by our recruitment team," he said. "We knew after last year what we wanted, and what I wanted, in the team.
"It was someone who has got all the ideas that we want in terms of with the ball and technical and tactical ability. But at this level you need to have a physicality and running power. And he was one of the guys identified a number of months back last season. We knew he was playing in a top league, but we felt we could take him here and improve his game.
"He's a dead ball specialist. So we know his delivery at Augsburg was very good. He was the set piece taker. You see his strike, just the power with which he hits the ball, it's just the level that he can get to. So, I'm really pleased for him. Obviously he gets his goal, he shows really good composure. But overall performance of him and the team was very pleasing."
