Celtic will be better in Europe next season – Deila

Ronny Deila took confidence from Celtic’s performance in their 1-1 draw with Fenerbahce on Thursday, insisting the Scottish champions will be better prepared for European football next term.

Having gone behind to Lazar Markovic’s effort before half-time, Kris Commons earned Celtic a point against 10-man Fener as the hosts progressed at the Sukru Saracoglu Stadium despite Diego’s second-half dismissal.

Celtic were consigned to bottom place before kick-off and ended Group A winless, having previously lost out to Malmo in Champions League qualification.

Amid criticism of Celtic’s European form this term, Deila promised supporters he would get it right for next season.

“It’s tough to come here. We met a very good team and it was a very good performance,” he told reporters.

“In the first half, we defended well and created a couple of chances – Nadir [Ciftci] almost got through and we also had set-plays.

“But then they got the goal and it made it a lot harder for us. We had to defend a lot and work hard. The game turned on the red card and also because we brought on fresh legs and creative players. We got the goal, I’m very satisfied.

“To get something from Fenerbahce is tough. We had a lot of players with not much experience in Europe so it was a good performance.

“We know what we want and know what we need, and we will do everything to get that right for next year. But first we have a lot of games to play domestically and we are looking forward to them as well.

“They showed they can get a result. We were 3-3 on aggregate against Fenerbahce, a very good football team.

“I have confidence in this group and we are going to show it.”