BRENDAN Rodgers has confirmed that Craig Gordon will start in goal against Manchester City in the Champions League tonight and admitted he got it wrong by pitching new signing Dorus De Vries into action too early in the first place.
The identity of the Parkhead side's first-choice custodian has become a source of early-season intrigue at the Scottish champions, after regular No 1 Gordon lost his place to De Vries shortly after his arrival from Nottingham Forest. The Dutchman has conceded 12 goals in five games and has yet to record a clean sheet, but arrived at the club with an ankle problem and drops out of tonight's line-up as he is deemed to be short of full fitness with a chest injury.
Rodgers, who places great store on a goalkeeper's kicking ability, feels the Scotland international will return to the line-up better for the experience of being out of the team for a spell which included big matches against Aberdeen, Rangers and Barcelona. It will be the veteran's first-ever start in a Champions League group match and he is likely to see plenty of action.
"I’m sure he [Gordon] will be really looking forward to it," said Rodgers. "He and I had a really good chat when I was going to make the change. I maybe made the change too early. Dorus was injured and he’d come back and maybe I pushed him in too early, to try to impose that way we want to work. So I take that responsibility.
"But the bottom line is that we have to win games and Craig and I looked at areas we think he can improve on," he added. "He’s gone away with Woodsy [Steve Woods, the goalkeeping coach] and when he’s come into training he’s been absolutely brilliant, taking it on board. When you’re fighting for your place and your position it allows you to perform better and focus. I think he comes back a better goalkeeper, that’s for sure."
Champions League Group C is an unforgiving place. After a 7-0 defeat in the Camp Nou on the opening match day, the Parkhead side's heaviest-ever European reverse, now Celtic have to contend with a Manchester City team who have won a perfect ten matches in all competitions since the arrival of Pep Guardiola. While they travel north without playmaker Kevin de Bruyne, who is missing with a hamstring injury, the remainder of their cast of world stars are all available.
Rodgers, who had an unbeaten home record against Manchester City during his time at Liverpool, was sensitive to the suggestion that such matches could only be a "learning experience" for his side. Celtic have a proud home record to uphold on Champions League duty, having lost just three of their 24 group stage games in this stadium, while Rodgers insisted there were aspects of City's 3-1 win against Swansea in midweek which were a source of hope.
"There have been 24 games here at that level, of which Celtic have won 16 and only lost 3," said Rodgers. "It’s an incredible record which shows you the power of the stadium and what it gives to the team. And of course those teams they played against really good teams as well. City are on a great run and it will end at some point, and why not us being the ones to end it? That has to be the attitude.”
Rodgers, who faces a dilemma as to whether he can accommodate both the in-form Moussa Dembele and Leigh Griffiths, would only say yesterday that the players had been informed of the team. While three players with Manchester City connections are on the club's books in the form of Kolo Toure, Patrick Roberts and Scott Sinclair, the Celtic manager spoke warmly yesterday of the form of Raheem Sterling, upon whom he was a formative influence.
“You have [Sergio] Aguero who is a world class striker," said Rodgers. "[David] Silva is a world class player too. My experience of managing against Manchester City – and my teams have always done fairly well, particularly at home – shows that when you face these guys the world class players always find the space. What you have to try and do is negate that as much as you can and negate their influence as much as you can.
“Raheem is back on track to be one of the world’s top players," Rodgers added. "He’s dynamic, super-quick and has great qualities and now has a clear plan of the team he’s playing in. It’s a huge task for us but de Bruyne being out helps as he’s a big, big player for them and has been so far this season. We saw some interesting aspects in the game against Swansea at the weekend so hopefully we can maximise that. While the players can reflect on that performance in Barcelona this is where it starts."
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