THE last time Celtic had a go at Bayer Leverkusen, even with the match being played on home soil, the outcome was nowhere near what Ange Postecoglou had in mind.

But as anyone who watched the match back in the dying embers of September will testify, the 4-0 scoreline only told a sliver of the story.

Celtic went into that match with the starting XI in a state of flux, with injuries to key players disrupting their early-season rhythm. That’s before factoring in the numerous new players to bed into the team in the first place.

And yet, the only real difference between the sides on the night was the ruthless efficiency displayed by the Germans in front of goal, with Celtic squandering a host of chances that may have changed the complexion of the evening entirely.

Now, almost two months down the line and with his side in a much better place, manager Postecoglou is preparing his men to have another go when they pitch up at the BayArena on Thursday evening.

This time though, he has challenged his team to come back with more than just credit for their cavalier approach.

“We are more settled than last time,” said Postecoglou.

“If I remember correctly that was Kyogo’s first game back after being out for a month. Cal McGregor’s first for a while too. So we weren’t very settled, our form was up and down in that period.

“It has a different feel now, we have a better platform and we need that because it’s an enormous challenge. But I feel we are in a good place to have a go at them. Can we take the game to them and come away with a result?

“I think it’s really important that we do that in games like this. Because otherwise it’s all bravado without any substance. The reason we play as we do is because that is the kind of team we want to be.

“We want to be that against everyone. If you shy away when the stakes are highest and you are up against better quality then I think the players would lose belief in what I am telling them.

“If we fall short we fall short. We get back up and go again. But changing our approach or trying to be more conservative because of the situation goes against the grain of what I am trying to teach this group of players.”

Having been on the end of such a chastening scoreline though, does Postecoglou feel his players truly believe they can go to Germany and play as much on the front foot as they would were they facing Dundee or Ross County?

“I think that’s growing although we are not there yet,” he said.

“We are still in the early stages of this but from my perspective when you get some positive results that helps the belief.

“But it’s also important to take your medicine at the same time. We did that when we went to Betis and when we played Leverkusen because we took it to two really good teams.

“We copped four goals in both games but I think they were exercises in building belief in the group, because the players saw that even though we were so unsettled and we were nowhere near our best, taking that approach we can still make inroads and make impacts in games.

“That helped build some trust between me and the players. Because when you concede four they are probably looking at me and wondering ‘Is he going to change his approach? Are we going to have to take the blame for this?’

“That never happened, we needed to steer a course through the rocky stuff and it has been a lot better the last four or five weeks where the results are following the performances.

“That accelerates the belief, but we still have a way to go.”

The likelihood is that Celtic will have to come back from Germany with something tangible to show for their efforts if they are to have any hope of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Europa League.

They currently trail second-placed Real Betis by three points with two games remaining, and with Betis hosting group whipping boys Ferencvaros on Thursday evening, it looks likely they will at least need to match their result to keep the issue live.

If they can, it would set up a final-game showdown against Manuel Pellegrini’s men at Celtic Park, a prospect Postecoglou hopes will act as a massive spur to his men.

“That’s the opportunity that is before us at Leverkusen,” he said. “It’s a hell of an incentive to set up a game like that.

“It could be one of those memorable nights at Celtic Park that stays for the ages. That’s why we are here, to create those moments.

“To get that opportunity we need to get the job done on Thursday, and that’s our first task.”