Champions League Aalborg Preview: Blackout Addition

By: Matt | September 16th, 2008

As some of you may or may not know, I attend the University of Dayton. On Sunday afternoon, Dayton and most of Southern Ohio was hit with “wind storms” that has knocked out much of the power in the area, including my home. While everything seems to be alright, the power has still not come back on. Food is spoiling, fans remain still, and most importantly I AM MISSING CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FOOTBALL! There is hope that the power will be back into our homes by tomorrow, so I do not miss this important Champions League match for Celtic against the Danish side Aalborg. I am currently writing this from UD’s Student Union and might be resigned to watching the match here in uncomfortable silence. Either way, Celtic face a key match right from the get go of their Champions League campaign. While Celtic’s struggles on the road are well know, Celtic Park has become a fortress during Champions League ties, seeing European giants Manchester United, AC Milan, and Benfica all suffer defeats there. Celtic will be looking to continue this success against Aalborg tomorrow.

Last year’s Danish Champions have not gotten off to a good start in looking to defend their title. In 7 matches so far, Aalborg has picked up only 7 points, including a 2-0 loss this past weekend to local rivals Aarus (the “Aa” derby?). This is Aalborg’s second trip to the Champions League, the previous time being 13 years ago. Aalborg also competed in the UEFA Cup last year, beating Sampdoria and went up two goals at White Hart Lane before eventually falling to Spurs so they have shown that they can play against bigger named teams in Europe.

Aalborg’s coach will be a familiar name to Scots, as it is former Scottish National Team Captain Bruce Riorch, and despite knowing what type of atmosphere can be found at Parkhead on a Champions League night, he is not just looking for Aalborg to just show up. “”We know we will play in a fantastic stadium in Glasgow and we expect a lot of good Scotsmen paying us a visit in Denmark. We are coming to make a good result – and that’s not a small defeat,” said Rioch.

Like Celtic, Aalborg will be placing much of their Champions League chances on the shoulders of their keeper. Moroccan keeper Karim Zaza is one of the better keepers in any of the Scandinavian leagues and will be the cornerstone of any Aalborg upset in their Champions League run. Jeppe Curth will be Aalborg’s main scoring threat, but the Danish side lack the offensive firepower that a Man U, Villareal, or even Celtic have. For the Champions League, there tactics will be defensive based, probably looking to counter after stifling opponents.

On the Celtic side, many Celtic supporters are wondering if the widespread changes seen in this past weekend’s 4-2 victory over Motherwell will remain for the Champions League. In the offseason, Gordon Strachan talked about possible using a 4-3-3 at home during the Champions League and a 4-5-1 on the road. I would expect Strachan to do just that with “it” striker Georgios Samaras and Scott McDonald up front, Shaun Maloney helping these two from a forward midfield role, and Aiden McGeady, Shunsuke Nakamura, and Scott Brown roaming the middle. The other questions about the Celtic XI will be in the back. Despite their troubles, expect to see Captain Steven McManus and Gary Caldwell in the centerback position. The fullbacks are a grab bag however. After being relegated to the bench, Lee Naylor was back into the starting XI in Motherwell and performed well, so I expect him to be in the starting line up. Despite not performing up to expectations so far, Andres Hinkel should get the other starting spot, as he was bought for Champions League football, but could not participate due to being cup tied last year.

The importance of this match cannot be overstated. While Celtic have had a successful run at home in the Champions League in the past, with such quality opponents as Manchester United and Villareal, Celtic fans cannot bank on an easy 9 points from home. This makes games like these more important. Celtic should be the more talented side, but cannot take anything for granted tomorrow. They need to come out and control possession and get an early goal. If down a goal, Aalborg will have to commit more men forward leaving them open in the back. They do not have the talent to try and attack and still sure up the back. The weather in Glasgow this past week has been rainy and might continue to be so on Wednesday, so expect a wet pitch, which could lead to mistakes. If Celtic can capitalize on an Aalborg mistake in this unfamilar, hostile, and likely wet pitch, it could lead to a crucial 3 points. My prediction, Celtic 2-Aalborg 0.