Michael Stewart has made a surprise claim about what Celtic would rather by the end of a season, with the Hoops reaching the knockout playoffs of the Champions League. This season, the Hoops proved European doubters wrong.
However, Stewart has made a claim that most will disagree with due to his unconvincing theory about the Europa League.
Stewart is often spot on with his analysis of Scottish football, but he is clearly wide of the mark in this case due to two factors: the financial advantage of performing well, and, most importantly, the on-pitch improvement.
Simply put, when Celtic play world-class teams, they become a better team by learning how to raise their game to European elite levels, as was clear to see at the Allianz against Bayern Munich.
Stewart said: (Scottish Football Social Club), “In a perfect world, before, it would have been, have a start in the Champions League, have a good campaign, drop down into the Europa League and try to potentially win it. That’s not possible now.
“So, here is the scenario. Would you forgo a season in the Champions League to then potentially get a favourable draw and have a real shot at going and winning the Europa?
“You look at Bodo/Glimt, in the semi-final of the Europa League, nobody is going to tell me that Celtic couldn’t compete with that last four. Man United. Tottenham. Bodo/Glimt. And Athletic.”
Stewart is certainly wide of the mark. Celtic have Champions League ambitions, and they will be desperate to push further in Europe’s premier competition next season, having been a minute away from extra time against Bayern.
For the first time in over a decade, Celtic have shown they can consistently go up against the best in Europe. For the large majority of the Europa League, they simply aren’t at that level.
Although Celtic would likely do well in the Europa League, it’s clear that if the Hoops want to avoid falling further behind the best teams in the world, they need to consistently qualify for the Champions League, with qualifiers in August to negotiate.
