Former Dundee United keeper turned leading Slovakian TV football pundit Filip Mentel admits he fears for Slovan Bratislava when they face Celtic this week.
Brendan Rodgers' men start their Champions League campaign with a home game against the Slovakian champions and the Hoops are massive 1/3 favourites with bookies to get off to a winning start. Mentel spent three years in Scottish football after United snapped him up from Manchester City, where he was a young keeper growing up with current Celtic No.1 Kasper Schmeichel.
He returned home after leaving Tannadice in 2013 and is now a respected TV pundit in his homeland who still keeps in touch with football in Scotland. And Mentel admits he's impressed with Celtic. He said: "I am really looking forward to the game because I worked in Scottish football for three years with Dundee United. It's a very nice competition. I tasted the iconic atmosphere at Celtic's stadium and it's something incredible.
"We cover games in Scotland and I have been a commentator in Slovakia now for ten years. So I know all about Celtic. I watched them beat Rangers 3-0 in the Old Firm derby recently. Quite simply, they are a machine. They have a brilliant captain Callum McGregor who has been through their Academy and they have some Japanese players who are extremely smart.
"I am Slovakian so I will be watching the game through my fingers! It will be very, very difficult for Slovan. And of course, Celtic have a very reliable, experienced and confident goalkeeper in Kasper Schmeichel. I know him well because I shared a flat in Manchester with him from when I joined City at the age of 16."
Meanwhile, Robert Mak has warned Celtic to forget any idea they will be happy to settle for a point in the Champions League opener this week. Celtic start their campaign in the new-look Champions League set-up on Wednesday with a visit from the Slovakian champions to Glasgow. Slovan are viewed as arguably the smallest team in the new format and have never played in the group stages of the competitions before.
Manager Vladimir Weiss this week urged expectations to be realistic and admitted the experience would be a learning curve for them. However, Mak - who has been capped 81 times for Slovakia and came through the ranks as a kid at Manchester City before going on to play for the likes of PAOK, Zenit St Petersburg and Ferencvaros - believes they can spring a shock at Parkhead this week.
He said: "Everything thinks we are going to Celtic to play for a draw. But I don't want to say we are going to enjoy it because we are going to fight for three points. It's the very highest level you can play at and we have some fantastic matches ahead of us. At Celtic, there will be a higher tempo than what we are used to at home and of course, there will be a fantastic atmosphere in Scotland. Although there has to be realism, we are definitely aiming to get as many points as we can. We all cannot wait for the game."
