Brendan Rodgers feels Celtic can be more compact in their latest Champions League encounter, but he insisted he would never change his approach.
Celtic had contrasting results in their opening two games with a 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava followed by a 7-1 thrashing by Borussia Dortmund.
Rodgers hopes they can learn lessons from their German trip and be tighter in certain moments, but his commitment to front-foot football remains firm.
“Listen, I started coaching many, many years ago, over 25 years ago, and from the very beginning my coaching has always been aggressive. And until the day I finish it will be aggressive, and that’s how it will be,” said Rodgers, who will again be without injured defenders Cameron Carter-Vickers and Greg Taylor.
“But I’m also respectful that where you play against teams at a certain level, certain opponents, you have to really look at their strengths.
“But don’t say I don’t do that in every game, because I do, no matter what team we are playing, whether it’s in Scotland or in the Champions League.
“It’s the level at which you can get punished. You have to have the balance in your game, you have to be really strong defensively.
“There’s going to be moments when you can press the game high, there’s going to be moments when you’re lower on the pitch. The key learning for us has to be that when you are in those moments, you cannot go on your own.
“The occasion and the emotion, when you’ve got a very, very inexperienced squad players playing at this level, sometimes you can make little decisions to jump out of your slot when you’re defending, when really you should stay, because at this level you’ll get picked off. So that’s the key for us.
“But we always have to carry that threat. We have to attack with that intention, to play through that pressure, and know that when you can do that against Atalanta, there’s space for you. But it’s always about striking the balance.”
Atalanta head coach Gian Piero Gasperini earlier outlined his own team’s journey in Europe on a similar commitment to attacking football. They suffered a 5-0 home defeat by Liverpool four years ago and beat the Reds 3-0 at Anfield last season on their way to Europa League glory.
Rodgers said: “If you look at this club here in Atalanta, it’s a great example. Obviously there are different resources that are way above us.
“But if you look at the actual principle of it, they came through and arrived into this level, and I’m sure the manager will tell you that some really harsh learning experiences, especially against the top Premier League teams, was really challenging. The scorelines were difficult for them.
“But then they come away and they learn from that, I’m pretty sure, and stick with the philosophy, but still look at certain areas where they can improve. And of course then you become better with that.
“So if it’s a pragmatic coach, it’s a different coach. I’m a different person. And that’s not to say that we go into the game and just be all out attack, all out front foot. That’s not how it is. But if a coach’s DNA is to sit back, then that’s not me. And it won’t be. It won’t be. It’s as simple as that.
“My idea is to have an attacking philosophy, which is about defending well, and defending when you haven’t got the ball, and being really aggressive and really strong in closing spaces. And then when you have the ball, look to create opportunities.
📍 Celtic Park, Glasgow
Training at Paradise this morning before the flight to Italy 🙌#AtalantaCeltic | #UCL | #CelticFC🍀 pic.twitter.com/getnp7PH2l— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) October 22, 2024
“But that’s not to say I don’t respect the different levels in the game, because I absolutely do. But I’ll always be mindful of having a balance in both attack and defence.”
Rodgers added: “This is the long game here in Europe in terms of what we’re trying to achieve, not just this season but going forward.
“One of the big reasons to come back was to show that we can make that progress. That isn’t something that happens in one game or two games.
“But we all do not want to have that feeling that we experienced after (Dortmund) because it’s an emotionally, gutting feeling after a result like that. But this is a team that’s spirit and togetherness is so strong.”
