Ange Postecoglou highlights fitness concerns ahead of Midtjylland tie
The Celtic boss says his players aren't at the levels they need to be
Ange Postecoglou admits Celtic's fitness levels are not where he would like them to be heading into their crucial Champions League qualifiers.
The Parkhead side take on Danish outfit FC Midtjylland on Tuesday night with the Australian boss admitting they could be in better shape.
Since arriving in Scotland the Greek-Australian boss has been busy trying to assemble a squad which is still light on numbers as he stated at his pre-match Zoom media conference: "If we are going to challenge on all fronts we are going to need a strong squad and at the moment we don't have that.
"We have had guys coming in at different times, whether that was because they had different end dates (to last season) others had to quarantine, others were on international duty.
"They are sort of all at different levels but what I do know is that we worked them really hard the last week to try to get them all up to a certain level.
"I don't think any of them are at the fitness they need to be at for what's ahead but I am confident that all of them are in a good enough condition to put in a good performance tomorrow night.''
Postecoglou was pleased to be working with the majority of his squad on Monday for the first time.
Ryan Christie, Nir Bitton and Ismaila Soro returned after overcoming niggles while James Forrest is back available having had to self-isolate after being identified as a close contact of a positive Covid-19 case.
However, Kristoffer Ajer and Olivier Ntcham will not be used against Midtjylland.
The Norway defender has had a fitness issue but he has been heavily linked with a move to Brentford while there has been speculation about the future of French midfielder Ntcham, who was sent out on loan to Marseille in the second part of last season.
Postecoglou said: "I am picking players who are available and have both the physical and mental mindset to play.
"The ones who aren't listed are obviously not ready for what we need to encounter tomorrow night. My focus is on the guys who are on that list.
"There are so many moving parts at the moment that I am trying to be as disciplined as I can to focus on what's in my control because ultimately tomorrow night is the most important thing and I am focusing on people who are contributing to that.''