ANGE POSTECOGLOU says that if his players show no fear against Real Madrid then they cannot possibly fail, no matter how the result pans out.

The Celtic manager wants his team to play their own game in the glamour Champions League opener at Celtic Park tonight, saying that the chance to record a stunning one-off victory – one that would surely rank among the most famous wins in the club’s history – comes secondary to sticking to their principles.

Postecoglou would love to take the three points, of course, but his focus is on the longer term objective of ensuring Celtic are regularly competing against teams like the Spanish champions, and that means taking their own game onto the biggest stage in club football.

When asked if any of his players may be daunted by the occasion or the opposition, Postecoglou said: “You don’t know. For a lot of the players in there, apart from maybe Callum (McGregor), James (Forrest) or Joe (Hart), this will be their first time. 

“But I will send them out there with the understanding that if they show no fear and just be themselves then they can’t fail on the night. They can’t. 

“If you go out there and give the best of yourself there is no failure. And however we come out from it, I will make sure of that.

“My objective is to make us a Champions League team. And to do that you’ve got to compete at this level every year, and every time you do you’ve got to make an impact.

“It’s not just about taking part this year and not making any progress as a football club.

“I don’t think we go from our recent record to this year thinking we’re going to fly through it. It doesn’t work that way. You need to gain experience, but that is my objective. 

“I think this club has had enough famous victories. If you want to become a really strong Champions League club it’s not just having a one-off victory. It’s about building.

“I don’t just want it to be a famous victory. That’s where we have to break the cycle. It’s about having a strong Champions League campaign.

“We can win [on Tuesday] night and if we lose the next five and don’t qualify it kind of defeats the purpose.  “Yes, everyone will remember the night and everything, but that’s not what I want.”

Carl Starfelt will definitely miss the match, with the knee injury he sustained against Rangers keeping him out for at least a couple of weeks, but Postecoglou has yet to make a decision on striker Kyogo, who trained on Monday despite the shoulder knock that forced him off in the early stages at the weekend.

“I am relaxed,” he said. “I want my best players available and he is desperate to play.

“He’s had such a great start to the season and the way he plays he can cause anyone problems. He got a bit frustrated last year because he had the injuries.

“We will give him every chance but as we showed at the weekend and we have shown so far we have alternatives in the team if he’s not able to play tomorrow night.

“We have been really big on building a strong squad and it’s for this reason. We’ve just started a cycle of playing every three or four days and we’re going to need everybody.

“If he doesn’t come up we have alternatives and we will still have a team out there that can compete.”