What they said about Celtic beating Barca.

Rod Stewart was moved to tears, Elton John was on the phone to congratulate Neil Lennon and the whole of Europe stopped in it’s tracks as the shockwaves of Celtic’s victory over Barcelona reverberated far and wide.

Everyone will have their own special memories to savour from that special night and here is what some had to say about it…

“Ark at Celtic with the cheeky win over Barca! Well done, great stadium to play in is Celtic Park” Rio Ferdinand

“Magnificent victory for Celtic. Historic, heroic and wonderfully stoic!” Gary Lineker

“People in Spain will respect football in Scotland more now because Barcelona is probably the best team in history but Celtic beat them in the Champions League” Miku

“First of all, I would like to congratulate Celtic. Their fans were amazing tonight” Tito Villanova

“Nobody will want to play Celtic over two legs after what they’ve just achieved against us.

“How many clubs play Barcelona twice and have such close matches?

“They have shown the whole of Europe they are not in the Champions League just to make up the numbers.

“If they can beat Barcelona they can beat anybody. Before, you might hope you draw a team like Celtic in the knockout stages of the competition.

“But I don’t think any club will be feeling like that now.

“As a player, you know how difficult it is to play at Celtic Park. The crowd makes it 12 v 11 and those fans would motivate any team in the world.” Pedro Rodríguez

“Unlucky that we lost even I think we played well. Happy to be back. No words to describe the atmosphere at Celtic Park!” Gerard Pique

“AMAZING! Well done bhoys!!! What a great performance from the whole team not to mention the atmosphere at Celtic Park!@OfficialNeil #legend” Marc Crossas

“It is all they have talked about down in England over the past couple of days. Most people who enjoy football will say that the current Barcelona side is the team they like watching most of all. My favourite team were the Real Madrid side of Alfredo di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas and Francisco Gento. I’d say Barcelona are in that bracket as well.

“They play such fine football and are the best team around just now, but there are Celtic beating them. People around the world will be looking at that result.

“I must admit I’d never heard of the lad Tony Watt before Wednesday, but it was a fantastic goal he scored. It was nice that a young Scottish player got the winner. It’s a boost for the whole game in Scotland.” Denis Law

“There are times when the atmosphere at a football match is even more memorable than the score — and last night here at Parkhead was a case in point. I sat among a group of Barcelona fans and they spent the night gawping and capturing the scene on their smartphones as Celtic, resolve buttressed by the towering concrete of their 12th man, earned the result of the week.” Patrick Barclay

“The best moment of my life beating Barca” Victor Wanyama

“Celtic sent shockwaves around Europe as they produced a stunning 2-1 Group G win over Barcelona at Parkhead yesterday to end the Catalan giants’ 100 per cent record in this season’s competition.” Jamaica Observer

“Congratulations for the historic win on their 125th anniversary @celticfc Go Hoops!” Club Santos Laguna

“One word. Brilliant!!!” John Hartson

“Congratulations to @CelticFC for well-earned victory a day after their 125-year anniversary.” FC Barcelona

“CELTIC PROVE BARCA CAN BE BEATEN. Good defensive tactics, an amazing performance by Fraser Forster in goal, a partisan crowd and a pinch of good luck. With these ingredients, Celtic cooked up a night on which Barcelona were unable to offer their best. There is perhaps no greater home pitch advantage in all of football than a Celtic match at Parkhead… as Barcelona learned the hard way.” Angel L. D. Maza (Spanish Press)

“BRAVEHEARTS OVERCOME BARCELONA. Barcelona were the guest of honour at Celtic’s birthday party. It is hard to imagine how this Celtic team, with the support of the fans, ever lose a game in this old and beloved stadium. The atmosphere was special: 60,000 plastic green and white sheets formed a mosaic of the club badge, and brutal screaming engulfed the Champions League anthem. They did not stop jumping, singing and shouting. This pushes people to their team. And there is a legend: the stadium literally shakes.” Joan Poqui (Spanish Press)

“BARCELONA CAUGHT IN A TRANCE AT CELTIC PARK. This match was a carbon copy of what we saw a few weeks ago at the Camp Nou. But this time there was to be no comeback, no triumph at the last minute. Celtic did not move an inch from their script. After taking the lead they retreated behind the ball, giving it to Barca. Barca were superior to their rival, who defended all the time. But Celtic are a tough nut to crack.” Ricard Lopez (Spanish Press)

“Forster heroics help Celtic achieve unlikely victory. This time Barcelona could not penetrate the wall of defenders they so often face in league and cup competitions. A corner, a counter-attack, plus some memorable stops by Fraser Forster, were enough for Celtic to counter Barca’s dominance.” Alfredo Garcia (Spanish Press)

“Boomtown greatest moment of my life! We have just beaten the best team ever! Got to say, I know ever player says it but today was the best atmosphere ever… Thank you” Joe Ledley

“It was just the emotion of it all. We have never seen anything like it at Celtic Park, right from the moment the fans all held up cards which said 125 years. Celtic Park has an atmosphere that’s second to none and I think everyone realises that now.

“This ranks right up there with anything the club has achieved but maybe winning the European Cup is just one notch above.

“I went home on Wednesday night and sat alone on my chair to try to let the adrenalin leave me. I didn’t get much sleep but I don’t think many Celtic fans would have.

“It was a wonderful result but the most important thing was the supporters showed just why Celtic Park is such a difficult place to get a result. Not even Barcelona have a right to just turn up at Celtic Park and win.

“There is something about our stadium, an aura and a magic that makes it difficult for teams to come here and get a result.” John Clark

“My players are all heroes to me and I can’t speak too highly of their performance,” he said. “You can talk about tactics until you are blue in the face, but football is about the players. They covered themselves in glory tonight. We can give instructions to them, but it’s down to the players to go and do it.” Neil Lennon

Twitter: @Vandalgrease