I watched Celtic leave English press awestruck and Newcastle will be next ones to learn this team doesn’t do friendlies

THERE was a sea of green around Notre Dame’s incredible stadium last season but the air was turned a shade of blue.

The assembled English press in Indiana following the fortunes of Chelsea in pre-season hadn’t bargained for what they were seeing.

Celtic were a star attraction in these parts with the Irish links to the famous American university.

But in football terms, Brendan Rodgers’ men were expected to be a decent punch bag for the Premier League team ahead of the new campaign.

Instead it was the Hoops who were the knockout. Those English hacks rolled out a few expletives, but it was more in disbelief at what they were witnessing.

Blimey, this lot are ****ing good, was the gist of it.

The Scottish champs gave a strong Chelsea side a complete runaround with the kind of intensity usually reserved for cup finals rather than pre-season knockabouts.

That was exactly what Rodgers demanded and – on the back of a similarly exhilarating performance against Man City in North Carolina a few days earlier – it totally set the tone for the campaign ahead.

And that’s also why Hoops fans perhaps shouldn’t be rolling their eyes or shrugging their shoulders at the announcement of another bog friendly bash against top EPL opposition this coming summer.

Rodgers said back then, Celtic don’t do friendlies, and it’ll be no different when Newcastle United come to Glasgow on July 19.

Punters might not be too fussed with these encounters and there’s an entire argument to be had whether they should be on the season books anyway.

In terms of a football contest though, this might be one to keep an eye on.

Rodgers has a similar view to taking on English opposition as Martin O’Neill had back in the day.

There’s nothing he loves more than sticking