Martin O'Neill insists Celtic are in top shape for their crunch Champions League clash with LASK – despite failing to replace Arne Engels. The Hoops boss has been frustrated in his bid for midfielder reinforcements for tonight's play-off first leg in Glasgow following the Belgian's £22m move to West Ham at the weekend.
Transfer Deadline Frustration
Celtic are chasing Torino's Gvidas Gineitis and Niko Sigur at Hajduk Split but couldn't force any deals over the line before last night's deadline. Twelve months ago former boss Brendan Rodgers admitted after flopping against Kairat at this stage the Parkhead club 'manufactured their own stress' by failing to land targets.
But O'Neill is confident the recruits he did secure will give Celts enough firepower to blast to the group stage. He said: “Do I think we are better equipped as a football club now? I think there are more goals in the team now than last season.
Goal Threat and Tougher Tie
“That is absolutely the case. We are capable of scoring more goals. We might draw a blank in both matches, but it won't stop me from feeling we are capable of scoring some goals.
“With respect to Kairat Almaty, from what I saw last year, I think this tie will be more difficult. I feel Celtic should really have gone through last year. That's the feeling with the group of players we still have. There was massive disappointment because they failed to score a goal over the two legs.”
Engels Departure and Fan Frustration
O'Neill will also be without suspended Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and he gets fan frustration at allowing Engels to depart without an instant replacement lined up. He said: “I will understand any arguments put forward about that. If I was looking at it from a distance, ideally it'd be great to have kept him.
“When it (the initial bid) came in, when there was nothing happened at all in early proceedings, I'm not saying you're hoping it'll lie down, and in fairness to us, we've actually actively been looking at replacements for him, they just haven't materialised at this minute. Sometimes that happens. We've actively been looking for a similar type player to him.
“But for him to go – right, OK, so we stop him from going, we play, and he plays the game and let's say his mind is elsewhere, that becomes a problem. That's the thing. He had his mind made up. In fairness to the lad, he played in the games. He played in the two matches, let's give him credit for that.
“I think when Alistair Johnston got injured, I think he thought, it could happen to him and that chance to not play down in London, and West Ham are a big club who can afford to take him. We've been actively looking at replacements for him. They just haven't materialised at this minute and sometimes that happens.
“But again, I've tried as much as possible to get a bit of quality in. So, we've let X number of players go and we haven't replaced them, numerically speaking. We have a bit of quality in, but we've got a little bit of time. But yes, for the Champions League, I'll take the point.”
Champions League as a Draw
O'Neill insisted he has the squad to get past the Austrian champions – and reaching the group stage could help persuade targets to make the move to Glasgow. He said: “If we can you'd think then there are some players you are looking at who might be dallying, they might think the Champions League is worthwhile going for.
“In my experience, last season would suggest you would need strength in depth to keep a level domestically and cope with these Champions League games in midweek.”
