Another European campaign has come to an end for Celtic. It was the Bhoys’ first tilt at a Champions League Group Stage for three years and it couldn’t have been any tougher.
Barcelona continued to follow the Glasgow side around the tournament and this year that challenge was further supplemented by the presence of Manchester City and Borussia Monchengladbach.
Should the Hoops retain their league title as expected, they’ll have another tough summer of qualifiers to follow – but will be confident they can once again navigate those to take their place in the groups next season.
The exit is a blow for a club and a support who often have expectations of playing European football after Christmas.
Still, there are positives to take and without the glare of European media, Celtic can regroup and come back even stronger next time around.
Here are our FIVE reasons why Celtic’s exit may end up being a positive for the club…
Less speculation about their top talent
Let’s be honest, the media glare from beyond Scotland’s borders will reduce dramatically now the Bhoys are out of Europe. It’s been a high profile season for Celtic, Brendan Rodgers and his team but now they return to their bread and butter.
There’s less glamour about a fixture away to Ross County than the Nou Camp and while that’s fine for most Celtic fans who tend to follow the team anywhere, there are likely to be less headlines written in England and beyond.
For the club, it may give them some breathing room around the endless speculation about the future of the likes of Moussa Dembele, allowing them to retain that talent into the summer and beyond.
The chance to rebuild
Had Celtic squeaked through in Group C of the Champions League, whatever lay next was likely to be a step beyond where they are ability-wise this season.
The Hoops have performed admirably but the scale of Rodgers’ task on arriving was massive and there’s plenty of work to do to make Celtic an outfit to be feared in European competition again.
The learning has been clear for all to see across the course of the campaign. A 7-0 defeat to Barcelona to a 1-1 draw away to Man City shows progress.
Now they have a chance to exit the pressures of the Champions League and re-focus, rebuild and come again next season.
Long-term planning in transfer window
Celtic will no doubt be active in the January transfer window and the lack of competition allows new signings a good six-month period to get used to life in Glasgow before being exposed to the mighty challenges Europe brings. Trials by fire rarely work that well in football.
Had they reached the Champions League or Europa League knockout stages, the club may have been tempted to panic buy to compete at that level. Now Rodgers has the space to plan more long-term.
Any players coming in January will likely be bought with next season in mind rather than February and that’ll be a benefit to all parties.
Six-in-a-row
Incredibly, Celtic have won the league title for five successive years now and are chasing an incredible 6-in-a-row.
The Scottish record, achieved first by Celtic in the 1960s and 70s, is 9-in-a-row – so Brendan Rodgers’ side aren’t that far away from making history.
An exit from Europe means that the Hoops can fully focus on the league campaign. To be fair to them they’ve managed the balance of responsibilities in Europe and Scotland perfectly so far, unbeaten domestically since Rodgers’ arrival.
There are seven league games to come in December and the focus of the Scottish champions is now exclusively on them.
Time for ‘the treble’
Celtic have already played 27 games this season and could play up to 60 by the time the season is over. Without the heavy fixture schedule that can arise in February and March when reaching knockout European football, the Bhoys will be fresh for the challenges of juggling domestic cup and league matches in the spring.
Celtic haven’t won a treble of Scottish Cup, Scottish League Cup and Scottish League title since the days of Martin O’Neill and supporters have craved it ever since.
If Rodgers can deliver it, he would make himself a hero at the club. They’ve already completed step one – now it’s time to focus on finishing the job.