Paul Lambert won eight major trophies in as many years at Parkhead and the former Scotland midfielder has enjoyed watching the current Hoops side blow away their domestic rivals for the last two seasons under Ange Postecoglou.
However, he insists that the Aussie must start to make inroads in Europe before he and his side can be considered all-time greats. Charlie Nicholas claimed recently that Postecoglou’s men are more exciting than Brendan Rodgers’ Invincibles and Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes added that the current Hoops side is the best he’s ever faced. Lambert believes it’s too early to make those comparisons, although he feels that Postecoglou will eventually claim his place in the club’s Hall of Fame.
“It’s always hard to compare teams from different eras, although the Lisbon Lions will always be the greatest – the club was build on the foundations of their success,” he said. Ange has done a great job since he came in, when he inherited what could be described as a shambles, with players who no longer wanted to be at Parkhead and others who should never have been there.
“But he hasn’t won a treble - yet. Martin O’Neill also took over a side which had trailed behind Rangers [in 2000] and won a treble at the first attempt. Brendan won an invincible treble, which has never been done before and then became the first manager in history to win back-to-back trebles.
“He couldn’t make an impact on Europe, though – unlike Martin, who took us to the UEFA Cup final against Jose Mourinho’s Porto in 2003. We lost in extra time against the club which would win the Champions League the following year and that remains the biggest regret of my career.
“If pushed – and I admit I’m biased – I would say that Martin’s team would be too strong for Ange’s side. However, if his next two transfer windows are as successful as his last three then they can also take that next step next season.
“Celtic should win the title again and that will guarantee them a place in the group stage of the new-look Champions League.”
Lambert, who won the Man of the Match award when his Borussia Dortmund side beat Juventus in the 1997 Champions League final, is convinced that Postecoglou will be determined to travel deeper into the Champions League next season.
“I could sense the hurt and disappointment coming through in Ange’s post-match interviews after their defeats against Real Madrid,” he claimed. They’d been the better team and created the better chances for an hour at home to Real before they were caught by sucker punches.
“The best teams do that to you. The level in the Champions League is ten times higher than the Premiership and you can’t slack off for a second. Ange will know where his team were lacking after those defeats by Real and RB Leipzig and he’ll look to sort that out.
“My gut feeling is that the manager and those players are desperate to make their mark in the competition and, with an even stronger squad next season, they should be in with a chance. Ange’s strike rate with his signings has been phenomenal and the arrival of the Japanese lads, with their talent and their work-rate, has been a breath of fresh air.”
Lambert also stressed that Celtic have a massive financial advantage over their rivals – and he argues that the champions could become one of the biggest clubs on the continent.
“Celtic are much stronger than Rangers commercially and that’s important,” he said. “The structure is sound, they have better merchandising and sponsorship deals so they’re flying on and off the field.
“That financial gap will only increase if Celtic get into the new-look Champions League next season – with four guaranteed home games and all the extra TV and UEFA revenue which comes with it – and Rangers miss out. Michael Beale has a big rebuild to do at Ibrox and, with Rangers on a UEFA watchlist over Financial Sustainability regulations, they’ll be limited as to how much they can spend.
“So he needs to get every new signing spot on just to try and keep up with them. Rangers outspent Celtic for many years but now it’s the other way round. For Celtic, though, the potential is there for them to become a European super club. They could be a real monster if they get things going and the manager keeps on doing what he’s doing.
“If they could put on another tier and increase the capacity of Celtic Park to 80,000 they would still fill it every week. It would be like my old club Borussia Dortmund – one end of the Westfalion Stadium holds more fans than most grounds.
“Celtic are a world-wide institution and, if they were ever invited to join the Premier League in England. I’ve no doubt that, after taking a couple of years to find their feet, they would be challenging for the title with the increased cash their member clubs receive.”
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