Venus ran a skeleton squad through their paces during a morning training session at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada, ahead of Wednesday night’s friendly against Portuguese side Benfica. In the stands sat Mo Johnston, the Toronto FC general manager, with his two sons, one wearing the green and white hoops
Only 15 Parkhead players have travelled to play in the CNE Cup, a one-off friendly that will appeal to the massive diasporic support bases that each side has in Canada’s largest metropolis.
Venus, who has only been with Celtic for eight weeks following Mowbray’s move from West Bromwich Albion, was looking forward to taking charge of the senior squad while Mowbray was back in Scotland working on potential last-minute deals. “For me it’s nice to just take the players and have my little bit of stature,” he said.
This isn’t the first time Celtic have played on the shores of Lake Ontario. On June 6, 1968, they faced European Cup holders AC Milan in a similar competition called the CNE Cup of Champions that was held at Exhibition Stadium, just metres away from where BMO Field, home to Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC, now sits.
John Clark, the current Celtic kit manager, was in that squad when Bobby Lennox and Charlie Gallagher led Celtic to a 2-0 victory over the Italian giants. “I think there were about 30,000 people there,” Clark recalls. “It was a competitive game. It’s good to be back here. We’re defending the cup we won all those years ago.”
A younger generation of Celtic players will have the opportunity to learn their trade tomorrow night. Dominic Cervi, the American goalkeeper, will make his senior debut, Artur Boruc and Lukasz Zaluska having both been called up by Poland.
The 23-year-old is well aware of the crowds Celtic attract wherever they go and reckons tomorrow’s match will feel almost like a home game. “I’m expecting a huge green and white following over here,” the 6ft 6in reserve goalkeeper told a small clutch of reporters before training.
Cervi said he was thrilled to make his first-team debut in such a unique setting and his parents have even flown up from Oklahoma for the match. “Benfica are a great team,” Cervi said. “At the same time we can’t be too concerned about them. We’ve got to come out and play our match.”
Venus said 18-year-old centre-back Josh Thompson will also get his senior debut in Toronto.
Organizers said the game is a 75% sellout so far despite the fact both squads are missing a large number of players due to international duty.
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