CELTIC midfielder Paul Hartley believes the new formation manager Gordon Strachan has tested out in pre-season will stand the team in good stead for Champions League away trips.
Strachan's men followed up a 1-0 victory at Porto with a 3-1 win against Feyenoord on Sunday, in a game which saw Georgios Samaras and Aiden McGeady supporting central striker Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink from out wide. Dutchman Vennegoor of Hesselin
k netted a double after Samaras scored the opener in a three-goal first-half rout in Rotterdam.
And Hartley believes the tactics could help end Celtic's poor away form in the Champions League, which has seen them pick up just one point from 15 group games.
"There have been some good performances over the last few weeks," explained Hartley. "I felt we were really good against Southampton, we got a great win against Porto and the Feyenoord game was excellent.
"The different formation worked well against Feyenoord. We've used it in a few games now and the boys looked comfortable with the system.
"Myself and Massimo Donati sat deeper in midfield, and that allowed Scott Brown to get forward with Aiden McGeady and Georgios Samaras to support Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink.
"I'm sure it's given the manager something to think about for the season ahead.
"The shape was good and against certain opposition, especially in Europe, it could be really useful."
McGeady also enjoyed his role in the system, which allowed him to become more involved in the game. "The manager wanted us to play like a three up front with Jan the point, Sami left and me right," said the winger.
"It was not a free role, but you were allowed to drift in when it was on to get on the ball. I was happy doing that. I played that role when I was younger and I enjoyed it.
"We did play well, and the midfield were able to get good balls into the strikers and into me as well.
"You don't want to go overboard about the result because it was just a pre-season game. But there was a lot of heart to be taken from that performance."
Hartley agrees with his team-mate that pre-season results and performances should not be discounted, as Celtic finalise their preparations for Sunday's SPL opener against St Mirren with a friendly against Barclays Premier League side Manchester City tonight.
"People say results don't really matter in pre-season," Hartley added. "That might be true, but at Celtic we play every game to win it. It's what expected at this club.
"It's the first home game of the season and it will be a tough one for us against quality opposition.
"I always like playing against Premiership sides. You always want to test yourself against that quality of opposition.
"Some people say the Premiership (sic] is the best league in the world and it will be sides of that standard that we'll come up against in the Champions League this season."
The full article contains 513 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
