Klopp handed Baur his first two senior caps for Die Mannschaft during the recent international break
Jurgen Klopp and Mika Baur embrace(Image: Getty Images)
View 2 Images
New Germany cap Mika Baur returned to Lennoxtown on cloud nine after being lavished with praise by Jurgen Klopp.
And the Celtic star was relieved to find veteran boss Martin O’Neill still in the building.
Baur, 22, made a dream debut for his country as a second-half sub as they beat Serbia. He then made a brief cameo against Greece – with Klopp branding him a “wonderful footballer”.
Baur admits he was awestruck at meeting the ex-Liverpool boss for the first time and making his international bow. He said: “First of all, there were a lot of new players as well in the Germany squad and Klopp is very good at making people feel welcome and comfortable.
“I mean, it was just eight days, but it felt different. We knew exactly what he wants. He showed us in every training session – a lot of intensity, pressing, counter-pressing. He just made us feel very comfortable in the squad.
“It was a nice experience. I had a feeling [of being star struck] when he called me the first time as I did not expect it. It felt surreal when I was there on the first day and was shaking everyone’s hands, especially Jurgen’s.
“But you feel very quickly that he’s just a normal guy and he’s not showing you something else. He just wants you to feel comfortable. The whole week, the whole eight days, I think, were a great experience.”
While Baur was savouring his time with Germany, uncertainty hung over O’Neill’s Celtic future.
So the sight of the 74-year-old at the training ground yesterday was a welcome one for the ex-Paderborn ace. Baur said: ”I just read it online like the other players.
“But absolutely, I was glad the coaching staff is still the same.
“I’ve only been here for seven weeks now and some things still feel new. If a new coaching staff would come in, it would be new again or even more.” Celtic head to Fir Park tomorrow looking to get their season back on track.
Mika Baur during a Celtic training session(Image: SNS Group)
View 2 Images
Baur added: “I’m really positive we can improve and get back on a winning streak.
“We’re still top of the league so we want to play like that with a lot of confidence and not look to the past and what happened.”
Get more Daily Record exclusives by signing up for free to Google’s preferred sources. Click HERE.
Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
Follow Record Sport on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all of the up-to-the minute breaking news, video and audio on the SPFL, the Scotland national team and beyond.
You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Celtic page and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season.
We're also on WhatsApp where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to you phone. Join our Celtic community here. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.