Blackburn another good test to get us ready for the first league game

The first outing back at Celtic Park after two months was welcomed by supporters and players alike, as the Hoops returned home for the first time in two months. After 10 days in Austria and the Czech Republic that brought with it three entertaining and vital pre-season games, Blackburn Rovers were in town for the first game at Paradise to play out another lively game and a 2-2 draw.

Goals from Jota and David Turnbull in the first half made for an exciting first 45 minutes after the English side scored inside 20 seconds.

The visitors would equalize in the second period, but overall it was a very positive workout for Ange Postecoglou’s players.

Speaking to Celtic TV after the match, the manager said: “It was not too bad. I thought the first half was good in terms of our competitiveness and our performance, both teams were at it and we conceded early but then we got a good grip of the game.

“In the second half it got scrappy but both teams made a lot of substitutions so it’s hard to get into the rhythm for the players coming on.

“So the second half wasn’t great as an overall exercise but that’s the challenge of these games.

“I thought the first half was reflective of the work we’ve done so far, but we’re still two weeks away from the season.

‘We did a lot of work in Austria and here in Scotland and it’s now about getting the guys in the best possible physical condition for the first game.’

“That means working hard in training and we showed in the first half we’re going well and the work we’re doing will bear fruit.”

The Hoops travel to Warsaw to take on Legia Warsaw on Wednesday, before hosting Norwich City next Saturday in the final pre-season match.

After that, the competitive football begins at home to Aberdeen and the manager is happy with where the squad is at two weeks away from that match.

He added: “We want as a group to be ready to go when we play Aberdeen here. How we get to that space is up to us.

“There’s a lot of time to prepare with a few good solid weeks already in the bag and we have two more weeks now to get ready.”