Sky Sports News reporter Mark Benstead has spent the last week with members of the Motherwell and Celtic teams in Austria to get a sense of how they're getting ready for the new season. The first stop was with Motherwell in the north region of the nation...
Motherwell as well as Celtic share three elements they share this summer: both are in preparation for European football. Both teams have been spending their preseason in Austria and both teams have had time off from training but on Love Island...
I was in the middle of the two teams, trying to gain an understanding of how they're shaping up in the lead up to the start of the new season. My first visit was with Motherwell located in the northern part of the country.
"A café, and a lake that's about it. ..." one sentence of their coach Graham Alexander, two answers to his interview have almost summarised why the decision was made to fly his team to Obertraun to begin the summer's preseason. The famous ski resort is just an hour and an hour away from Salzburg and more than three hours from Vienna. In the summer, it provides only a little distractions, which is ideal for a group of youngsters who are who are focused on football and not much other.
The team has been working for a long time here. alarm calls at 6am are followed by runs of six kilometres through the woods. All this is before the having double sessions of training every day followed by a cap off with the mother of all nature's versions that of the contemporary ice bath: taking a dip in one of the local rivers or Hallstatter See, the lake located in the center of town.
A lot of dedication from them that's for sure, and lots of courage too, it is revealed. The boys saw a water snake (they have video proof) taking part in one of their swims, but they've persevered and returned to the pool every single day. This kind of courage could take you to the top of the ladder during the season!
In talking to the manager I believe two things are evident. He is, first and foremost, happy to have a less hectic transfer window. There's been a lot of chopping and changing the Motherwell team in recent times and this summer only two new players have been recruited -- Paul McGinn, and Blair Spittal. The team is still hoping to add some others, however overall, he is pleased that the team has a uniform look to it. He is able to build on the good things that happened the previous season and not having to start at the beginning.
The other thing to remember is that he's not imagining how difficult the task will be duplicate the success of last season. The club's capacity to surpass expectations throughout the past decade can lead to that people don't know the rules they have to work within. Finishing fifth and earning the European position is far beyond what the club is expected to accomplish, at the very least with regard to budget.
However, that doesn't mean the team doesn't believe there's things they can make improvements on. I was able to go on a bike ride together with goalkeeper Liam Kelly and he knows the performance, particularly toward the end of last season, could have been better. But his perspective is a sensible one "we finished fifth and know there's still plenty of room to improve, that's better than finishing ninth or 10th." Kelly has a point.
Postecoglou's Celtic
From Motherwell's mountain base , it was a short drive on to the A9 autobahn until Celtic Camp in Bad Erlach. The plan for this week is a mixture of training and pre-season games. As with Motherwell there's a certain uniformity in their squad. This summer has been about keeping players such as Jota and Cameron Carter Vickers as it has been about bringing on new players, Ben Siegrist and Alexandro Bernabei being the exceptions.
The most significant shift for Ange Postecoglou, who is preparing for his second year as the manager of Celtic and Celtic is that he's actually having the time to spend time together with the players. In the past, he spent almost no time working with the team in general, since the team was trying to recruit 12 new players with the limitations of Covid. In the summer, he's getting this time with his team and it's clear that he's having fun.
I sat and watched an exercise It was actually Postecoglou that directed the first exercise. The drill was focused on playing the ball fast and constructing attacks. It was crucially, the ball was always on the field. Once it was out or was in the net, another ball was brought back into play and the players played back to play.
Postecoglou would like his players to be more agile when they play and this in part is because they are fitter. His team has a good ability to score late goals in the year (Ross county away and Dundee United at home are two that come to thoughts) It's a bit unsettling for other teams to believe that they could be in better condition heading into the season ahead and be able to work more for longer.
There's been an obvious increase in the Celtic backroom staff in recent times - Harry Kewell is now on the team of coaches. The former Leeds United and Liverpool winger was a part of the two Champions League finals, so it's likely that the experience he brings is invaluable to share with the team however, he also brings new ideas to the table as per his manager.
As Postecoglou said to me: "If players come in and see no change, I don't think that sends the right message." Fresh faces both on as well off of the pitch could change the game and the choice of Kewell is definitely an intriguing one.
There are some players from Austria that have questions on their names as they head into the new season. Albian Ajeti is in the Austrian team, but it appears almost certain that the player will leave when a new deal is agreed upon. The Swiss striker made 17 appearances during the season. With the most recent appearance coming in December. It is safe to say that he's in the bottom of the pecking order.
Christopher Jullien is perhaps the one to be most concerned about in the in the coming weeks. He was thought to be heading for Glasgow but his plans to move to Germany failed and, with his fellow defensive partner Carl Starfelt returning from injury and a touch-and-go that will be ready to start the season, does he possibly be an option for the club? There is a good chance that he'll remain, but he has been in the pre-season squad, and one wonders what could happen in the event that he is a good player and plays the way Postecoglou would like from his centre-backs.
As Graham Alexander, Postecoglou would be keen to expand his roster of players particularly in midfield due to the loss of Nir Bitton and Tom Rogic. But one of his most important players is already within the team's engine room with the captain Callum McGregor. McGregor played 63 times for the club and national team this season, and will play a pivotal role for Celtic in the coming season.
In the present, he's trying to balance his role of driving the team through training, and that of social convener on the side. Like the situation down in the same direction in the case of Motherwell, Love Island is the most popular post-training show of the preseason. The most interesting thing is that McGregor states that it's not just local players who have chosen it for their entertainment for the evening, but the international players are taking part. I'm curious to know the thoughts of Jota, Kyogo and co think of Casa Amor... but if it boosts team spirit then who is I to judge?
