Celtic have found out that they will open their 2019/2020 season with two matches against FK Sarajevo. The Bosnians will provide the first hurdle for Neil Lennon’s side as we aim to continue our domestic dominance and make inroads in Europe.
It’s not an easy opener, far from it. In previous years we’ve faced the likes of Lincoln Red Imps, Stjarnan and Linfield. We’ve won all of our ties by at least two goals despite the occasional scare.
Sarajevo look like a much tougher proposition. They play at a stadium that holds over 34,000 and it will be pretty full when Celtic visit in the middle of July. This tie is no gimme.
Problem area
With all of that in mind, Celtic must make sure they’re well prepared in every area. Midfield to front we’re pretty well set at present while goalkeeper, centre-back and left-back should be good enough for now.
One area that needs reinforcements, and fast, is right-back. We’ve gone from having four options to just one, in a very short space of time. Cristian Gamboa and Jeremy Toljan have both departed the club following miserable ends to their spells, while Mikael Lustig is expected to join them in the coming days.
That means that Neil Lennon will be left with just Anthony Ralston. The 20-year-old featured just five times last season – once while Lennon was in charge. The Northern Irishman clearly doesn’t fancy the youngster so it’s hard to envisage him playing in the tie against the Bosnians.
But who else do we have? Well nobody is the answer. We can’t afford to go into some of the biggest games of our season short once again. It has happened too often in recent years and was part of our undoing last season.
Sarajevo will be a test, make no mistake. There will be no “settler” this year. The task will start tough and get tougher. It’s important that we’re well equipped in all areas from the get-go.
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