Celtic v Spartak Moskva: It’s On

By: JT | August 29th, 2007

Today is the day that we’ve waited two long weeks for (it feels like so much longer, doesn’t it?). After Celtic’s doggedly determined performance on the fake pitch at Spartak Moskva’s Luzhniki Stadium on August 15, all in Timdom have been eagerly awaiting the home leg of this tie. As I so adeptly chronicled, there were tons of positives to be taken from the draw. Now even more factors are in the Bhoys’ favor.

First off, Polish cult hero Artur Boruc, the Holy Goalie himself, will be back between the pipes. Mark Brown is a solid understudy, but Boruc is on the cusp of earning the revered title of “world class”. Its UN mandated that every time you mention his name those two words must preceed it, no matter the context. He’s about one penalty save in the CL away. Personally, I’m sure that Boruc would have stopped the goal Spartak scored in the first leg. Also, when Boruc plays it saves me from having to type Mark or Scott every time I refer to one of the Brown Bhoys, and that’s always helpful to the cause.

Next is form. The Celts have gone goal crazy since the Moscow leg. Three against Aberdeen, and a wonderous five goal performance against Hearts on Saturday. I’m not sure I’ve seen them play a better 90 minutes under WGS since last year’s 3-0 over Benfica.

On the other hand, Spartak lost 3-1 this weekend to 9th place FK Rubin Kazan. Yeah, I know I couldn’t believe it either. They had all their big guns in the lineup too, so no pre-Euro excuses. Rumor has it that the Spartak squad have been hit by a “bug”. If that means long hours on the potty, that just can’t be good news. For them, of course.

Third, Rangers have made it into the group stages. The pressure to keep up financially with the blue half of Glasgow adds extra incentive here. The cost of not making it could be substantial. No pressure though, Bhoys.

Fourth, and most importantly, the crowd.

Enough said on that front, I think.

Its there for the taking. The lineup should be the one that is rapidly becoming the clear cut First XI. Kenny Miller is the only injured Celt.

___________Boruc____________
Wilson-Kennedy-McManus-Naylor
Nakamura-Brown-Donati-McGeady
________JVoH-McDonald________

The first 30 minutes will be crucial. Celtic need to get on top, and if at all possible, shut this thing down early. The crowd will be in a frenzy, and they have to use that adrenaline burst to their advantage. I’m backing the Captain to get on the board first with a header from a Nakamura corner. Massimo Donati’s looking tough these days, and I can see him coming through with his first European goal. An even second half is played out, and Celtic sees out a comfortable 3-1 victory.

And on to the group stages they will march.