Celtic rounded off their Uefa Youth League campaign with a 4-1 defeat to Real Madrid ahead of the top team facing the same opposition this evening at the Bernabeu.
The young Hoops got off to the worst possible start at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium as the hosts scored after just TEN seconds from the kick-off. Things got even worse as Los Blancos scored a second with just eight minutes played.
Tobi Oluwayemi was also on hand to make a brilliant save with just ten minutes played with Celtic facing a real uphill battle in the opening stages. However, with 16 minutes on the clock they found a way back into the contest. Dylan Corr sent a ball into the box and Adam Brooks was on hand to poke the ball home. But Madrid once again hit back just shy of the half hour mark as they restored their two-goal advantage heading into the interval. They added a fourth late in the second period to record another convincing win over the Scottish side.
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Celtic's opening fixture of the competition ended in a difficult 6-0 defeat to the Spaniards so Darren O'Dea and Stephen McManus will take heart from the improvement in this one. Like their first team counterparts, the youngsters knew their fate heading into this one and could not qualify from the section, but it was a chance to shine against one of Europe's best academies and test themselves at the top level.
Reflecting on their time in the tournament in the build-up to this game in Spain, O'Dea said: “When you play for Celtic, especially in the first team, you get judged off results. It’s very important that people understand that this isn’t what it’s about for these players.
"This is the first time they’ve experienced this and the things they’ve learned and the progress they’ve made has been remarkable.'
"Every game they’ve been tested to the max and that is what we crave for the players - for them to be tested every game, every day.
“We’ve played against very good young players, top teams, top setups so they’ve had to perform to their max to get any result.
“In this group, this competition, everything is early and that’s a fantastic learning tool for the players.”
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