Celtic kick off their Europa League campaign this week in France.
Charlie Nicholas has told Sky Sports that he doesn’t believe Celtic stand much hope of beating Rennes in their Europa League opener on Thursday.
Neil Lennon’s side kick off their group stage with a trip to the high-flying Ligue 1 outfit this week.
Rennes sit second behind Paris Saint-Germain in the French league and have won their last three games on the spin.
But former Celtic hitman Nicholas has accused his old side of being scared away from home and does not believe that the Hoops have much hope.
He told Sky Sports: “Rennes have started very well in Ligue 1. I am hoping that M’Baye Niang will not be playing.
“He is lightning quick, almost a lesser version of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. These guys can play and move, and that is what Celtic struggle against. Celtic will be good on the counter-attack, but their reputation is always the same.
“They get scared when they travel away from home. They don’t know where to pitch their defence and whether to play a squeezing game or not.”
In the Bhoys’ defence, Nicholas is mostly referring to Celtic during Brendan Rodgers’s stint as manager.
They haven’t had a group-stage game under Lennon for quite a few years and therefore it seems unfair to assert that they ‘get scared’ away from home in Europe.
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