Neil Lennon stressed his Celtic side are not in Barcelona ‘for a holiday’ after they landed in the Catalan capital ahead of Tuesday night’s Champions League clash with Barcelona at the Nou Camp.
The Parkhead men trail their star-studded hosts at the top of Group G by two points after two games but few expect an away win, even though Barca coach Tito Vilanova has something of a defensive crisis on his hands with Daniel Alves, Carlos Puyol, Gerard Pique and Eric Abidal all expected to be missing.
The Hoops boss acknowledged the magnitude of the task at hand but is keen to ensure his players go into the game in the right frame of mind.
“It is exciting times for the players and the club and the supporters as well,” he said.
“But we are not here for a holiday. We are not here for the tourist attractions. We are here to play football. We are going to be in for a tough 90 minutes but we want Barcelona to be in for a tough 90 minutes.
“We need character and mental strength and allied to that the players need to play at the peak of their abilities to overcome what is probably the best team in the world at the moment.”