Celtic hopeful Moussa Dembele’s leg injury is not serious

Brendan Rodgers hopes Moussa Dembele’s tight leg is not a cause for concern after his brace in Celtic’s 3-0 home win over Alashkert  helped set up a Champions League second qualifying tie against Rosenborg.

The Hoops’ 3-0 win in Armenia last week made the return game something of a formality with Dembele scoring in the seventh minute before getting the second from the spot with a strike from James Forrest taking the Scottish champions through 6-0 on aggregate.

In between the first two goals, Parkhead defender Jozo Simunovic was shown a straight red card by referee Haratiu Fesnic for a high challenge on Jefferson Reis, but the home side remained in control even after Dembele went straight up the tunnel in the 65th minute after being replaced by Ryan Christie.

The Parkhead manager said: “He was tight at the back of his legs so we will need to assess that tomorrow and in the next couple of days.

“He is as fit as he has been since I’ve been here at this stage of the season so hope it was just a tightness and he will be okay.”

Rodgers felt Simunovic’s dismissal after only 11 minutes was unfortunate but was happy at the way his side responded.

He said: “In European football it is always difficult when your foot is that high.

“I thought the referee could have have kept him on the pitch or gave him a warning because I don’t think it was intentional.

“The ball was put back at him quickly and he raised his boot which caught the player. I think it was the same player who elbowed Kieran Tierney.

“It was an impulsive thing but in European football you normally get punished for that.

“So it was something we had to deal with and the players know how to cope with it and they coped very well.

“After taking the lead we lost a man but over the course of the game the players were very calm and pressed in the right moments and we dominated the game considering we had 10 men.

“So I am proud of the team. It was still a challenge to play that long with 10 men.”

Celtic beat Rosenborg 1-0 on aggregate in the penultimate qualifying game last season .

And with Simunovic suspended and fellow centre back Marvin Compper still injured, and Dedryck Boyata and Mikael Lustig not back from World Cup duty, Rodgers expects another tough tie, with the first match at Celtic Park next Wednesday night.

He said: “They were two tight games the last time we played and we got a goal late on to get through.

“They will come here and be nice and compact, like they were last year and we will need to be patient in that game and obviously it will be a tough game for us out there.

“But it is a tie we look forward to. At this stage of the season whoever, you get, you have to respect who you play.”