After Celtic’s agonising Champions League exit at the hands of Bayern Munich, Paul Lambert has urged the club to go beyond simple squad improvements if they want to take the next step in European football.
The former Hoops midfielder, who lifted the Champions League trophy with Borussia Dortmund in 1997, insists that Celtic must push recruitment to another level—as standing still will only see them fall behind their rivals.
Speaking about the challenge ahead, Lambert acknowledged that Celtic are doing a great job financially, but highlighted the need for real top-level investment if they want to progress past the knockout play-off stage in future seasons.
“Listen, the downfall for Celtic is that the league in Scotland isn’t the most powerful, as everybody knows. They can only beat what’s in front of them.” [TalkSport]
“The club do great with the finances. They’ve got really clever guys there so they’ve got to live within their means. They can’t go and buy somebody for £50million. It’s impossible. They don’t want to be going bankrupt or into liquidation and things like that. They have to look after themselves, which they do and they fight brilliantly within their means.”
While Celtic have shown they can compete, Lambert warns that every club in Europe will strengthen in the summer—meaning just keeping pace won’t be enough to break through.
“If the guys don’t learn from that and want more of it, then there’s something wrong. There’s that jumping on the bandwagon thing when you say ‘we’re ready for the next stage in Europe,’ but so is every other team. Every other team is going to go and buy and every other team is going to get stronger, so Celtic are going to have to go up another level.
“They’re going to have to go and invest in really top, top players to get you by that, because every other team in Europe will be doing the same. But what it’s done for them is shown everybody that they can definitely compete.”
Despite falling short of the last 16, Celtic’s campaign has been a success in many ways, proving they can stand toe-to-toe with Europe’s elite. Lambert believes the club is ready for Champions League football but stresses the importance of sustained, high-level investment to build on this season’s progress.
“Especially at home, their record has been really good. It’s just getting that little bit of consistency. The club is geared for Champions League football with the size of it.”
With millions banked from their European run and a summer transfer window approaching, all eyes will be on how Celtic respond to this challenge. Will the club push the boat out to take the next step, or will they risk being overtaken by the competition?
