Celtic globetrotters used to brutal journeys even if first world problems get lost in the shuffle

Daily Record

a day ago

Alistair Johnston isn't the only member of Brendan Rodgers' squad who regularly racks up the air miles in between matches
It's the longest journey possible in European football to a city that's a hop and a skip away from China.
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But Alistair Johnston insists the mammoth trek to the far end of Kazakhstan will be a walk in the park for Celtic' s regular globetrotters.
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The Hoops are determined to go far in the Champions League but this wasn't quite what they had in mind.
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Brendan Rodgers men will face FC Kairat in Glasgow on Wednesday night for the first leg of their £40m play-off showdown.
And they'll need to finish the job the following week more than 3,500 miles from home – before returning to take on Rangers at Ibrox.
If the Celts went that far in the other direction they'd end up in Chicago.
Johnston knows what's up ahead and he admits it's going to be BRUTAL.
But there are plenty of Hoops stars who know what it takes to do the business on the pitch after going long haul.
The defender – who will be 7000 miles from his Vancouver home – said: 'We've quite a few guys that do it pretty regularly. Obviously, the Japanese boys, myself, (USA aces) Auston Trusty and Cameron Carter-Vickers.
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'It's not fun, I'll tell you that much. It's pretty brutal, it'll be a bit of an eye opener to the European boys who are used to a little hour or two's flight away.
'When you're crossing an ocean or going through five to eight different time zones, it really adds up and makes it difficult.
'I'm curious exactly what the plan's going to be with the travel, but ideally as you try and get there a little bit earlier, acclimate and just get ready to go. But then at the same time right after that you're coming back and it's going to be a really difficult test away at Ibrox.
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'So, there's things like that where you need to be able to plan and rely on the squad.
'It's a big couple weeks here for us. But all of us international boys who are used to those long distance travels obviously will try and help out with some tips for the other guys.
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'The longest I've travelled? Japan was a brutal one. I don't think people understand how far that is.
'It's like an 8-hour flight from here to Dubai then another 8 hour flight from Dubai to Japan.
'With Canada, anything on the West Coast is really difficult for us. We've had some travel days that have probably added up to about 24 hours and you come back a little groggy, then you're right back into the facility the next day to get training.
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'You get used to just keeping the wheels going and getting back on the horse.
'Sometimes you can have a match on a Tuesday night for example, you can't fly out until the Wednesday, you land whatever time it is Thursday. And often I've come in on the Friday morning, trained then got on a bus up to Ross County and played Saturday morning.
'It's stuff like that that I think gets lost a little bit in the shuffle. But at the same time, we get paid pretty well to deal with that stuff.
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'And it's definitely a first world issue so it's not something we complain about too much.'
Johnston's not going to lose any sleep over the jaunt – it's all about the journey to the Champions League.
And he's convinced Celtic are in top shape going into the first leg after an unbeaten start to the domestic season and a sizzling show against Falkirk in the Premier Sports Cup win on Friday.
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Johnston – who notched a stunning second goal in the 4-1 stroll – said: 'I think that that was exactly what we needed. Obviously, it was the first time playing under the lights at Celtic Park, It's a bit of a different atmosphere, a bit of a different feel with a night game.
"I think it reminded everyone that this is what it's going to feel like. It prepared us well for what's to come.
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'The pressure is going to come with it, it's a massive two-legged tie. We know everything is in the balance but we're excited for it and there's nothing more you could ask for than other guys getting a good performance, getting some more minutes into some of guys' legs.
'From guys who have played big minutes already so far this year and guys that came in, everyone's in a pretty positive note with their performances. We're in a really good place right now.'
Johnston has been hooked on the Champions League since he landed at Parkhead and he reckons the Hoops new boys are in for a treat.
He said: 'For the new guys that have come to the squad, there's that hunger. They're not really understanding what it is, they've heard of it but they haven't felt it. 'It's a great moment whenever you get to play at Celtic Park under the lights on a Champions League night. So that's something that is now our task over these next week and a half – to go out and make sure we get guaranteed a whole group stage of it.'