5 days ago
The Brendan Rodgers Celtic joke to send shivers up fans' spines as Como stuns while battering the wallet
Our man Michael took to water but is going to need a bigger boatload of cash to stay fed if the Hoops are here until Sunday
There's no doubt Como is one of the prettiest places on the planet – but it's also pretty steep, writes Michael Gannon in Como.
Celtic fans hit the city ahead of the Ajax game and they very quickly got hit in the wallet.
You'd be lucky to get a beer for less than a tenner and good luck getting a bit of dinner for less than 50 quid.
Put it this way, we popped in to one restaurant for a wee bowl of spag bol – but could only afford the Parmesan cheese.
There are some expenses you can't avoid though. Like taking a boat trip on Lake Como.
It's an experience too good to pass up on, and there are ways to do it that won't break the bank.
Unfortunately it means getting up at 6.30am to queue for tickets for the cheaper ferries.
It wasn't the easiest alarm call after a late night watching Nicolas Kuhn in action for Como and hiking it back to the digs well after midnight.
Incredibly, there was still a huge line, even at that ridiculous time in the morning, but at least the seats were in the bag.
It turns out you get what you pay for. The ferry that turned up for our group looked like the boat from Jaws – only in worse shape.
There were no outside viewing spaces so everyone was below deck. That would have been fine if the windows were half decent.
But these things could have done with a good scrub. We were scooting along the water alongside some of the most beautiful scenery in the world – yet could barely see a thing.
Just as well the boat stopped at the various towns and villages along the lake, including the stunning Bellagio.
Turns out it's not much like the Las Vegas Hotel but it's every bit as expensive.
It doesn't have a Greggs either so it was more antipasti rather than a cheese and onion pasty, and the wallet suffered another dent.
There won't be any such problems for the Celtic squad though, over in their swanky base around the bay.
Brendan Rodgers revealed he'd been here before as a guest of Watford's Italian owners when he was in charge of the hornets and he seemed to enjoy being back in town.
The Hoops boss was in the stands for the Como game against Al Ahli, along with coach Gavin Strachan and goalie coach Stevie Woods, with either side up next for his men.
Rodgers was in good form, cracking jokes at his press conference with the local media. At one point a journo asked Callum McGregor how he keeps things fresh after so much success.
'Changing managers', Rodgers laughed, which might have sent an even bigger shiver up the spine of Celtic fans than the drinks bill.
