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Celtic's Ledley remaining optimistic of result against Juventus
03-Mar-2013 12:20:00 AM
The Hoops midfielder hopes his team can get off to a good start in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash with Italy's Old Lady despite losing the first leg 3-0
Celtic midfielder Joe Ledley insists "anything can happen" as his side prepare for their Champions League clash against Serie A champions Juventus after losing the first leg 3-0 at Celtic Park.The Scottish Premier League leaders are facing a likely European exit after goals from Alessandro Matri, Claudio Marchisio and Mirko Vucinic left the bianconeri on the cusp of the quarter finals.
Ledley expressed his disappointment at being benched for the first tie, but hopes to make his mark in the return match after scoring the opening goal in Celtic's 2-1 Scottish Cup quarter-final win over St Mirren on Saturday.
"Hopefully I will be starting on Wednesday and we look forward to it," he told the The Glasgow Herald. "It is a fantastic arena and a fantastic team to play against and you just never know in football, anything can happen.
"The first half is going to be key and if we get 1-0 up then you never know. We know it is going to be difficult because they have been brilliant this season, we just need to, hopefully, get a good start."
Celtic manager Neil Lennon will also welcome back defender Charlie Mulgrew who has missed the last three games with a muscle injury, and is glad to have the 26-year-old ready for action once more.
"We will see what we have got and where we are in terms of injuries," he told reporters. "I don't think we picked up any injuries today, the substitutions were basically tactical. There might be a few bumps and bruises but nothing too serious and we will have Charlie back, that's a bonus because he is very important to us."
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