THE Last 16 Lions doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.

The Queens of the Quarter Finals is also probably a non-starter, as would be the Semi-Final Superstars.

Now, reaching the above mentioned rounds in the Champions League would be no bad thing. Indeed, were Celtic to qualify for the group stages once again next season, never mind managing to navigate their way to the knock-out games, it would quite rightly be viewed as tangible success.

Like last year, it would bring money into Celtic but not a lot of people out onto the streets. There would be no need for an open top bus. That is what the supporters really crave and perhaps a European trophy is a realistic goal.

Read more: Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will have 'sensible' money to spend in summer transfer windowThe Herald:

Celtic won’t win the Champions League but they would at least have more than a fighting chance in the Europa League a trophy some are sniffy about but to so many big clubs is now the only real chance for them to become a European champion.

One man who did this was Pierre van Hooijdonk, back in Glasgow yesterday to offer up his many, many thoughts on his former parish, who won what was then called the UEFA Cup with Feyenoord in 1999.

The former Celtic man, who looked as if he could still pull on a pair of boots, was in excellent form as he discussed the matters of the day. His return coincided, of course, with the 50th anniversary of Celtic’s greatest day, a moment which as we stand will never be repeated.

However, according to their ex-striker, that does not mean Celtic will never be able to reach a European trophy once again – their last coming in 2003 – as long as their dreams are more modest than those of a certain John Stein.

“If I was a club director, I’d want the Champions League. As a player, I’d want to play in the Europa League,” said Van Hooijdonk. “I’d want to be part of something that I feel I could win.

“Celtic won’t win the Champions League. You can dream about it but it won’t happen. We won the Europa League after being knocked out of the Champions League. That is the best scenario. You get the money and stay in Europe. Everyone is happy.

Read more: Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will have 'sensible' money to spend in summer transfer window

“As a player, you want leave a legacy at a club. If Celtic reach the Champions League quarter final, that would be fantastic. But do you think there would be big posters of them up in the city centre? No way.

“However, if they finish third and win the Europa League, there would be banners everywhere. I do think this Celtic could get to the Europa League final next season. I have been very impressed with what I have seen this year.

“There is a big change from last season.”

Van Hooijdonk is actually spot-on. If Celtic were to reach the group stages, again that would be no mean feat, and finish third then Brendan Rodgers would make a club a not so small fortune and subsequently drop into Europe’s second competition as a seeded team.

There are a lot of its and buts; however, the Celtic support certainly believe right now that anything is possible. Especially with the manager they have.

It says something for Rodgers that one of the players not to get a sniff of a first-team place, the almost forgotten about Nadir Ciftci, remains a huge fan of the man who sent him out on loan almost immediately.

The Pole’s agent is none other than Van Hooijdonk who said: “We will speak to Celtic but Nadir has no issue with Brendan at all. Nadir had a good pre-season with Celtic last year and I remember him phoning me after the first day last year.

“He said, ‘Pierre, you have no idea how different it is under the new manager’. Brendan impressed him so much and when I watched the Celtic games throughout the season l could understand why.

“Under Ronny (Deila), there wasn’t a lot of excitement for the Celtic fans. I would watch games on TV and see all these green seats. I never knew they existed before because they were always filled by supporters.

Read more: Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will have 'sensible' money to spend in summer transfer window

“When Brendan came in, everything changed at Celtic. The difference he has made to the team and individual players has been incredible. He has done a fantastic job. Celtic are exciting to watch. They play with pace, strength and always look to attack. That’s down to Brendan.

“In my country, we thought that we had done everything right but we’ve been struggling for some time now, not qualifying for tournaments, so we had to change some things. Now we have these laptop coaches on the one hand against the former players on the other. I’m not going to say that one of those approaches is the best because sometimes neither one works.

“Ronny was more focused on the statistics than Brendan, though. That is the easiest example I can think of. Brendan obviously does a lot of good work on the training pitch. When you see the progress at Celtic in the last 12 months, it’s clear he is a top-quality coach.”

Pierre van Hooijdonk was speaking at a William Hill event. William Hill are proud sponsors of the Scottish Cup