It's the plum draw every Celtic fan was craving. Moritz Jenz admits he’s in the same boat when it comes to heading to the Bernabeu. Real Madrid was the one the Hoops all wanted and their wish was granted in Istanbul at last night’s glitzy draw. RB Leipzig and Shakhtar Donetsk will be formidable in Group F as well but there’s only one name on everyone’s minds this morning.
Parkhead chiefs will need Willie Wonka to handle the golden tickets for the Bernabeu but Jenz reckons Celtic’s rivals might not feel the same about coming to Glasgow. The big defender believes there will be some of the world’s best will be thrilled at the prospect of walking out at a packed Parkhead. But they might also be terrified.
Jenz has heard all about the famous atmosphere in the east end of the city when the great and the good come to town. He knows about Celts taking down the then reigning champions AC Milan in these parts a few years ago. Jenz doesn’t need to be told about the night Tony Watt raced through to sink Barcelona and nearly take the roof off the rafters.
The German is dreaming of creating a few more magical moments and he’s convinced even the likes of Madrid will be shook up by Celtic Park.
Jenz said: “I’ve never been to Madrid, so this will be my first trip. I’m looking forward to seeing the famous Bernabeu.
“But for me, nothing compares to Celtic Park. A lot of players, like Messi and the Bayern Munich players, have spoken about the incredible atmosphere here.
“It’s a frightening place for an away team because the fans are crazy here in Scotland and the game is intense. I think they’ll be looking forward to playing here.
“I can’t wait to hear the Champions League anthem and the roar before the games. You look at the results against Milan and Barcelona. Exactly – it just shows what can be done.”
Celtic landed in Group F and for most it will stand for Fantastic. Effing Fantastic in fact.
There’s a terrific blend of glamour and potential. Madrid are the standouts but second – and third spot – looks a live fight between the other three sides. Jenz knows the Spanish giants are the opportunity to make a Real impression though.
He said: “I think there’s a lot of good memories of Real. When you remember the games against Bayern Munich, they were very close to Real Madrid. I think these are the games you want to play against, the memorable moments, where you can maybe do the big moment against them.
“It sounds very interesting, sounds very challenging. You always want to compete against the best players. So I’m really looking forward to competing against them.”
The group have added intrigue for Jenz with a German side coming out of the bowl in RB Leipzig. Celts clashed with the soft drink super fuelled Bundesliga outfit in the Europa League in 2018 – when Brendan Rodgers side won in Glasgow but lost in Germany.
They were also dumped by Rangers on the way to Seville last season and Jenz admitted it will be a special tie for him.
He said: “If I’m honest, I didn’t really mind if it was a German club or not. But, it’s nice to go back to Germany and compete against a German team.
“I have two friends who used to play at Leipzig and we’re still in touch, we still talk about it. So they will definitely text me in a few minutes. They’ll also say ‘you come to Leipzig, how about some tickets?’”
Shakhtar are a different ball game. A lot has changed since Celts met them in the group stage in 2004 and again in 2007.
Jenz said: “They are in a special situation at the moment and it’s sad what is happening in Ukraine. I’m sure they will want to make their country proud. We want to make our country proud as well, so it will be an interesting game.”
Jenz can allow himself to dream now the draw has been done and he’d love to keep up his blistering start at Celts in front of goal. The on-loan Lorient centre back said: “I first need to stop my goal drought as I didn’t score in the last game! If I have the chance to be dangerous in the box in the Champions League then hopefully I can take it.
“We’ve been doing a lot of practice on set pieces so if there are opportunities then I want to be as dangerous as possible. An overhead kick in Madrid? Of course! A goal is a goal for me, and I’d take a scrappy one as long as I can contribute to the team.”
Celtic have enjoyed a gentle start to the season with no qualifiers but it’s about to kick off big time with huge clashes coming thick and fast – including an Old Firm showdown before the first Champions League encounter.
Jenz said: “It’s a big spell but every game is important for us in the league, cup and Champions League. We have to go step by step and continue to be consistent. We have to raise the level again."
Celtic have also tooled up for the hectic period with Sead Haksabanovic checking in yesterday in a £2m move from Rubin Kazan. Jenz said: “He’s a very talented player and a very nice person. When you are a big team you need a lot of options and he is another attacking option for us.
“There’s a lot of competition all over the team, you look at the centre back positions as well. It’s the same up front. We want to be dangerous for 90 minutes and we have got attacking players who can start or come on with 20 minutes to go and they can make a difference.”
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