Celtic take on Shakhter Karagandy in the final round of the Champions League qualifiers today. The Kazakhstani side had an unusual tactic which they think could give them an edge over their Scottish opponents.
From BBC.co.uk
The visiting media were taken aback by the revelation that the Kazakhstan club had again killed a sheep in order to bring them good luck.
The sacrifice took place at the stadium before the players trained but Kumykov played it down.
"This is a play-off round and we decided not to break this tradition," he explained.
"It is quite important for us. I would not like to disclose in detail."
Quoted in The Telegraph, Neil Lennon had an open-minded view on the tradition.
You have to respect that. It is a different culture. Players have their own superstitions. We have a very diverse group of players from different parts of the world, different religions and you respect that.
Shakhter previously knocked out BATE Borisov, the Belarussian side who made waves in the Champions League group stage last season by beating eventual winners, Bayern Munich.
So maybe the unusual tradition from a western perspective might have some merit after all.
