UEFA EL PREVIEW: Rosenborg vs Celtic

Posted Thursday, November 29, 2018 by PA

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has targeted victory against Rosenborg to set up a last-day Europa League showdown with Salzburg at Parkhead.

The Hoops are in third place in Group B with six points and face the bottom side in Trondheim on Thursday night.

RB Leipzig are also on six points but with a better head-to-head record than Celtic and they travel to section leaders Salzburg, who have maximum points after four games.

Rodgers is desperate for the win in Norway which will definitely leave his side with a chance of getting out of the group when the Austrian outfit visit Glasgow on December 13 for the final fixture.

“There’s been lots of big games and this is the next big game for us,” said the Northern Irishman, who will consider bringing fit-again skipper Scott Brown and midfielder Tom Rogic back into the side.

“We want to go into our last game at Celtic Park with an opportunity to qualify and if we get a victory tomorrow night then we have an opportunity to do that.

“We understand and respect Rosenborg and that respect has grown and they’ve come off the back of a celebration of being champions again for the fourth consecutive time.

“So we know it can be a difficult game for us and that is what we will prepare for.”

Rini Coolen aims to be “smart” in the utilisation of his Rosenborg squad.

With the Norway cup final against Stromsgodset on Sunday where Coolen hopes to conclude the domestic season by clinching the double, the club’s interim boss will use his players carefully against the Hoops.

The Parkhead club have the Betfred Cup final against Aberdeen to look forward to at the weekend but they still harbour hopes of qualifying, while Rosenborg are effectively out of the competition.

“We will try to use the best players available but of course we have to be smart as well, some players will not play the full 90 minutes,” said interim manager Coolen, who remains unsure if he will be kept on as boss next season.

“Pal Helland came back from injury and is doing well in the last weeks but I will keep him out of this game because he has to be ready for Sunday.

“All the other players are available so we will have a good squad tomorrow.

“There will be players in the starting 11 that I can maybe take off a little bit earlier than normal.

“We have to think about a few things but we want to perform against Celtic.

“And yes, we’d like to show in our last home game against a European team, that we can do better than we have done against European teams.

“Both games are very important, we have a very good squad and we will use the most players possible to have a good result and a good feeling, to prepare ourselves for the next game which is also very important.”