A few years ago, the thought of Celtic being able to saunter off to Japan in mid-July would have been about as unlikely as Brendan Rodgers returning as manager.
This week, however, Rodgers will take his Celtic charges to Asia to play a couple of high-profile friendly matches.
With Champions League group stage football already assured, there is no need for the team to stick around in Scotland.
Instead, we will be able to continue preparations for the coming campaign without any summer jeopardy. It’s a Champions League reward that we should never take for granted.
It’s the second summer in a row we’ve experienced it, arriving as a result of our status as champions of Scotland. Of course, winning the league wasn’t always good enough for an automatic Champions League spot. That’s a relatively new thing.
On Wednesday, hours after our clash against Yokohama F. Marinos, a number of European champions will be playing crucial qualifiers. We know the feeling all too well.
Astana, Ferencvaros, Qarabag, Lincoln Red Imps and HJK are all familiar names from a Celtic point of view. All are in UEFA qualifying action on Wednesday.
The likelihood is that we won’t be in this glorious position forever. Scotland could really do with a strong showing in the UEFA coefficients table this season, although this year’s league winners will be guaranteed a Champions League spot for next season whatever happens.
But qualifiers are likely to return for Celtic one day in the not too distant future. If we can make the group stage our home in the coming seasons perhaps qualifiers will be a less daunting experience.
In other news, it seems clear that Celtic’s moves for Yang Hyun-jun and Kwon Hyeok-kyu are complete
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