Latest news with #ShakhterKaragandy
The National
3 days ago
- Sport
- The National
Kairat Almaty warned of psychological pressure facing Celtic
And veteran boss Viktor Kumykov revealed he ordered his Shakhter Karagandy players to listen to recordings of a packed Parkhead at full volume to prepare them for what would await them. Celtic face Kairat in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs with a £40 million prize at stake for progression. The Hoops first played against opposition from the former Soviet nation 12 years ago and they were stunned in the first leg which had been moved to the capital of Astana, where they crashed to a 2-0 defeat. But they eventually beat Shakhter Karagandy 3-0 at home thanks to an injury time winner from James Forrest, with the still-going-strong, highly-decorated Hoops legend proving the hero. Shakhter Karagandy were managed by Kumykov, who is still a boss in Kazakhstan with FC Kaisar. Read more: And he's warned Kairat players what to expect tonight. He said: "It will be much harder against Celtic than against Slovan Bratislava, who they played in the last round, especially away. "They have a chance because the second leg is at home, but it depends on how they cope in Glasgow. "We beat Celtic easily at home, but in Glasgow, we didn't have enough strength. "It was a 16-hour journey, including connections to get there and we conceded in both halves in injury time. "It is important for the Kairat footballers to withstand the psychological pressure. "We prepared in Karaganda by listening to recordings of the sound of the Celtic stands, turning up the speakers at full volume. "In 2013, Celtic were very strong - they beat Barcelona. "They are worse now and I think Kairat have a better chance than we did back then - they are experienced in European football these days."
The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Kairat Almaty warned of psychological pressure facing Celtic
Celtic face Kairat in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs with a £40 million prize at stake for progression. The Hoops first played against opposition from the former Soviet nation 12 years ago and they were stunned in the first leg which had been moved to the capital of Astana, where they crashed to a 2-0 defeat. But they eventually beat Shakhter Karagandy 3-0 at home thanks to an injury time winner from James Forrest, with the still-going-strong, highly-decorated Hoops legend proving the hero. Shakhter Karagandy were managed by Kumykov, who is still a boss in Kazakhstan with FC Kaisar. Read more: And he's warned Kairat players what to expect tonight. He said: "It will be much harder against Celtic than against Slovan Bratislava, who they played in the last round, especially away. "They have a chance because the second leg is at home, but it depends on how they cope in Glasgow. "We beat Celtic easily at home, but in Glasgow, we didn't have enough strength. "It was a 16-hour journey, including connections to get there and we conceded in both halves in injury time. "It is important for the Kairat footballers to withstand the psychological pressure. "We prepared in Karaganda by listening to recordings of the sound of the Celtic stands, turning up the speakers at full volume. "In 2013, Celtic were very strong - they beat Barcelona. "They are worse now and I think Kairat have a better chance than we did back then - they are experienced in European football these days."
The Herald Scotland
13-08-2025
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
The Kazakhstan hex Celtic will attempt to smash in UCL tie
But Scottish clubs have a nightmare record in the former Soviet outpost in Asia and have lost on five of the seven occasions and drawn twice. Celtic have been in Kazakhstan on three occasions, but each time it was in Astana. In 2013, they crashed to a disastrous 2-0 defeat to Shakhter Karagandy, who had moved their game to the capital. Three years later, Celtic did at least salvage a 1-1 draw against FC Astana, and a year later, Celtic lost 4-3 in the away match to the same opponents, although the tie was wrapped up after a 5-0 home victory. Read more: Scotland also suffered an infamous defeat under Alex McLeish six years ago when they were destroyed 3-0 also in Astana. And three Scottish teams have also played 770 miles to the east in Almaty too. Aberdeen lost 2-1 to Kairat Almaty ten years ago in the Europa League when a Kenny McLean goal wasn't enough for Derek McInnes' team, who could only draw 1-1 at Pittodrie in the return and were eliminated. And Scotland Under 21s have twice played there in the past three years - they drew 2-2 in 2022 when current Celtic scout Peter Houston took charge of the team because manager Scot Gemmill was suffering from Covid in a match with floodlight failure. And last October, they lost 3-2 at the crumbling Almaty Ortalyk Stadium despite a wonder striker from new Udinese star Lennon Miller, when a win would have seen them qualify for the Euros play-offs.
Daily Record
08-08-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
The Celtic Champions League lure that is like nothing else as first teamer admits 'it's addictive'
That Shakhter Karagandy moment will never leave the Hoops veteran and his hunger is the same as when he was just a Bhoy James Forrest was still but a Bhoy when he enjoyed his big Champions League moment on a warm summer's evening. Now a dozen years on, it's the lure of another Euro buzz that is keeping the Celtic veteran going in the autumn of his Parkhead career. It was back in August 2013 when a then 22-year-old Forrest rode to Celtic's rescue against Kazakh opposition. Trailing Shakhter Karagandy 2-0 from the first leg, Neil Lennon's Hoops battled back to level the tie thanks to Kris Commons' screamer and poacher's finish from Georgios Samaras. But with extra-time looming, Forrest pounced to grab a 90th-minute winner which propelled Celtic into the group stages of Uefa's biggest tournament - as well as launching Lenny on a wild streak down the touchline. Even now, Forrest still finds it difficult to put into words the jubilant feelings that were sent coursing through his young veins that night. But the desire to sample them all over again has never left the now 34-year-old club doyen. "It was massive,' he recalled. 'I think the fans that night were really good because we were 2-0 down and we came back here. 'I remember we scored in the first half and the fans erupted, they were really good for the full 90 minutes. 'What's it like scoring a goal like that? Hard to describe. That's why you keep playing, you want more because it's addictive, the feeling you have with the players. 'The buzz you get from it is, I don't get it with anything else. As I said, it's addictive. 'When you've had so many highs with Celtic, it's hard. Sometimes you do that and then two days later you're travelling somewhere and playing another game — so you need to get going again. 'But when you do experience stuff like that, it does make you think, I want more.' It's at his age that most players begin to think they've had enough of football. But retirement can wait as Forrest strives to sample that intoxicating high one more time. 'My only thought is, just keep working hard and keep trying to play for as long as I can, as long as I feel good, because I've done this since I was a wee boy. 'So I'm just going to go for it. I've got another year here, I'm not even thinking about retiring now, I'm just enjoying the games. 'It's pressure games every couple of days and it is great to be a part of.' The pressure will certainly be on if Celtic are forced to make another eight-hour flight to Central Asia in this year's Champions League play-off. Brendan Rodgers' men will take on the winner of Kairat Almaty's tie with Slovan Bratislava and with the Kazakh title winners a goal up from Wednesday's opening leg, another long-haul journey beckons. It's the kind of perilous trip Scotland's champions haven't needed to worry about for the last couple of years, having qualified straight into the new league phase. But Forrest is confident the Celtic staff will have them well catered for should they need to make the 4,600-mile jaunt across five time zones. He said: "I can remember we used to have to play four qualifiers. You'd go away on international duty, get a couple of weeks off, and then you're back in for the qualifiers. 'It's obviously been good the last couple of years we've gone straight in. But we've had a good pre-season, we're going to have a couple of games before the qualifier and hopefully the boys will be raring to go. 'These games can be hard of course, especially in somewhere like Kazakhstan. "I think I've maybe been there like three or four times. I've been with Scotland too. 'It is difficult because you probably need to go two days before the game just to adjust to the conditions given how far away it is. 'But we've got enough experience with a lot of international players who know all about the travel and stuff like that. "The club has got sports scientists, physios and people who are looking after us to make sure the boys have the best chance of getting a result. 'Whatever team we get, there'll be no excuses either way." Forrest definitely isn't looking to slack off, even if he's no longer a guaranteed starter. And as long as has the opportunity to help Celtic reach the finish line, he's happy. Asked if he sees himself now as a squad player, the club's most decorated ever servant said: "You want to keep being involved, you want to keep being a part of it. 'A couple of years ago when they changed the rule so you could make five subs, it's meant that wingers and attackers will be changed more during matches. 'Teams want to keep the same intensity for the full 90 minutes, so it's been normal that manager's will want freshness in the legs. 'But even if you're not starting the game, you can be the one who sees it out. 'You've seen it plenty of times when you start a game, play 70 minutes but don't see much of the ball. Then somebody else can come on for 20 and scores. Then all everyone talks about is that guy who came on. "I think it's good that you have a big squad and the manager can change because we do have a lot of games. 'You do want to play as much as you can, but I'm getting older so it's good for the coaches that they know that they have got players to swap." Some players might not enjoy that but Forrest is far too long in the tooth to spit the dummy out. "If you've been left out of the team for a wee bit, you want to try and prove them wrong,' he said. 'You feel as though you can still be a part of it and still be able to make an impact. 'I've just kind of always had that kind of view on it my full career and I'm just going to keep doing that and hopefully keep contributing and helping."
