Goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel says resuscitating Celtic’s fragile confidence has been a key method of interim boss Martin O’Neill.
Schmeichel, back in his homeland for the Europa League tie against Midtjylland on Thursday night, said: “A lot of things are a lot easier when you get the confidence of winning games. And one of the first things the boss said was to remind us that we are a very good team. I think that was one of the big issues with us.
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“We were lacking a bit of confidence because we were creating chances. We just weren’t really sticking them away. And even the other day [against Rangers], we probably shouldn’t have gone to extra time.
“But yeah, that confidence always helps massively. And when you’ve got very good players like we do, then that’s how you transform those near misses into wins.
“We were a group who had an incredibly good season last season. When you think about when we almost beat Bayern Munich away, it doesn’t just happen overnight. It’s a confidence thing.
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“And getting people to believe in themselves again, I think that’s one of the key things. But there’s obviously other stuff, and that’s something we’ll keep to ourselves.”
Schmeichel is relishing playing on Danish soil on Thursday although revealed it won’t act as extra motivation for him.
“I’ve never played club football back here,” the 39-year-old said. “So to come back to Denmark, and granted it’s a while from Copenhagen where I’m from, but it’s always good to be home.
“I wouldn’t say I’m extra motivated or anything. But it’s of course great.”