Celtic sweat in shadow of Hoops heritage site as cheeky fans chance their arm with the local law

In the Heat of Lisbon? Aye, right.

As Glasgow basks in glorious sunshine, spare a thought for us poor souls in Portugal. I opened the curtains yesterday (Friday) to grey skies, puddles and a drizzle that wouldn’t look out of place on Sauchiehall Street.

Not quite what I had in mind when I packed a suitcase full of shorts, t-shirts and Factor 50.

Still, the Celtic players weren't complaining too much as they were put through another sweat-soaked pre-season session

As I write this, I'm sitting in the media room of the Cidade do Futebol - otherwise known as the City of Football - where the Hoops have based themselves.

Normally home to Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portugal teammates, for the next few days it’s been painted green and white.

Fittingly, the state-of-the-art complex is just a CR7 free-kick away from the Estadio Nacional - the holy ground where Celtic’s name was etched into European folklore in 1967.

The bowl-shaped stadium on the banks of the River Jamor is a cathedral of Celtic history. Remarkably, 57 years on from the night when the Lions roared, it remains almost untouched.

Well, for now at least, as there are plans in place for a multi-million-pound facelift.

That’s why you’ll always see green and white jerseys dotted around the place. Even tonight (Saturday), it’s playing host to Portugal v Ireland... in the rugby, mind you.

But for Celtic fans, it remains the ultimate bucket-list destination.

And sure enough, as we made our way through the gates at Cidade do Futebol, a minibus full of supporters pulled up, hoping for a glimpse of the action.

One bold Glaswegian rolled down the window and tried to sweet-talk the Portuguese security guard into letting them in for a peek at training.

There was a clear language