Celtic have a small chance of securing pot three in the Champions League, should they qualify through next season’s play-off.
However, it’s most likely that the Hoops will be in pot four, as we have become used to over recent years.
Whilst we may not know who Celtic’s manager will be, we do now know that they will enter the competition at the final stage of the qualifiers, thanks to their Scottish Premiership triumph.
Should they get the job done (as they didn’t against Kairat Almaty last August), their pot will be determined by what happens in the other qualifiers.
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Celtic likely to be in pot four for next season’s Champions League
Via the ever-reliable Football Rankings on X, Celtic are expected to be the second-highest coefficient club in pot four should they qualify.
They need two of Bodo/Glimt, Union SG and Dinamo Zagreb to miss out to lower ranked clubs in qualifying if they are to move up a pot.
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It goes without saying that this is unlikely to happen, given that Bodo and Union both held their own in this season’s competition.
Celtic know they will be seeded for the play-off round, which will also include AEK Athens, Viking and LASK Linz.
Potential opponents who enter the qualifiers at an earlier stage include Red Star Belgrade, Slovan Bratislava, Lech Poznan and the aforementioned Dinamo Zagreb.
Hearts’ punishment for missing out on the Premiership title is a place in the second qualifying round of the League Path, rather than Celtic’s Champions Path.
Derek McInnes’ side will face either Fenerbahce or Sturm Graz in this round. If they are to make Europe’s biggest club competition proper, they will need to navigate two more rounds.
Rangers will enter the third qualifying round of the Europa League, whilst Hibs and Motherwell will enter the second qualifying round of the Conference League.
Jota will be out until at least October time 😢
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Celtic’s European performances under Martin O’Neill this season
All in all, Martin O’Neill’s European results since returning to Celtic have been a mixed bag.
In just his third match since replacing Brendan Rodgers, he was beaten 3-1 by Danish side Midtjylland, leaving their European progression in more than a bit of doubt.
However, he responded to this with a famous 3-1 win over Feyenoord in Rotterdam, the club’s first win in the Netherlands since O’Neill himself beat Ajax in 2001.
Upon his second return, Celtic needed four points from their last two games. Despite having ten men for an hour, he masterminded a 2-2 draw in Bologna.
A win away in Stuttgart was something of a consolation for a heavy home defeat in the first leg.
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