Celtic take on Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League this evening.
Pundit Charlie Nicholas has told Sky Sports that he thinks Paris Saint-Germain will defeat Celtic 3-1 in the Champions League this evening.
The Bhoys returned to the Champions League group stage again this season having beaten Linfield, Rosenborg and Astana to make it back to Europe’s premier club competition.
After being drawn against Barcelona, Manchester City and Borussia Monchengladbach last year, Celtic were hoping for a more favourable group this time – but those hopes did not come true.
This year, Celtic have been drawn against European heavyweights Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, as well as Belgian outfit Anderlecht in another difficult group.
Tonight, Celtic play the first game of the group stage as they face Paris Saint-Germain at Celtic Park, with Brendan Rodgers hoping to spring a huge shock on the French giants.
PSG made headlines over the summer by breaking the world transfer record to sign Neymar from Barcelona, whilst they also landed Dani Alves and Kylian Mbappe as they look to dominate in Europe as well as France.
It’s a daunting task for Celtic, and whilst there have been magical nights at Celtic Park in European clashes over the years, pundit and ex-Bhoys striker Charlie Nicholas can’t see another one happening this time.
Nicholas has told Sky Sports that Celtic must adapt to PSG’s star-studded attack, and whilst the atmosphere at Celtic Park will be incredible, he’s backing PSG to claim a 3-1 victory.
“It’s a Hollywood game to start with for Celtic and I think it’s a fabulous fixture, but they are not here to make up the numbers,” said Nicholas. “I’ll be covering the game on Soccer Special and I’m really looking forward to it because the atmosphere will be unbelievable. This crowd at Celtic Park really does give them extra energy and belief. Celtic play a lovely flowing game but still got well beaten at times in Europe last season. They are used to 60 to 65 per cent possession but you have to adapt with PSG’s forward line.”
“If you don’t and leave yourself wide open to the counter-attack then you will get destroyed with the pace of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani. Cavani is the one that really concerns me. His movement is incredible, he’s very, very brave and his runs across the line are a nightmare for defenders. Celtic will be in their faces from the start and my old friend Scott Brown won’t let me down with a booking, and I think they will rack up a fair few cards. I hope I’m wrong here but I can’t see anything other than a PSG win,” he added.
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