Now that Celtic have taken care of Hearts all attention turns to the Bhoys’ match against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
The reigning Slovakian champions visit Glasgow on matchday one of the revamped tournament and will be underdogs against Brendan Rodgers’ side.
That’s not to say they won’t provide a threat. Coming through four rounds of qualifying during the summer, it’s clear that they know how to compete at a European level.
Preparations haven’t been great for their trip, however, with manager Vladimir Weiss Sr unable to be on the bench for their last two matches in the cup and league due to illness, as confirmed by the club’s official website.
After missing a midweek win against AC Nitra, he was again absent for Saturday night’s match away to Dunajska Streda.
It has been reported by Slovakian media that he’s suffering from flu and doesn’t want it spreading through his squad.
Slovan Bratislava assistant oversees Saturday night win
Assistant coach Boris Kitka was the man in charge at the MOL Arena as they picked up a 2-1 Superliga win.
Dunajska Streda took the lead in the match after a Guram Kashia own goal before in-form winger Tigran Barseghyan netted an equaliser.
The Armenian international then scored a dramatic 90th-minute penalty to secure the three points and give his team a morale boost ahead of travelling to Scotland.
Remarkably, the home side then had the chance to draw from the penalty spot in injury time but Matej Trusa couldn’t convert.
Barseghyan has been Bratislava’s star man this season and now has eight goals from 12 matches in all competitions.
Slovakians are making history with Celtic Park appearance
It’s unclear whether Weiss Sr will be able to make the trip to Scotland to face Celtic or whether he will miss out again with illness.
It’s not an ideal situation for his club to be in for such an important fixture, though his health is obviously the most important thing.
This is Slovan Bratislava’s first-ever appearance in the group stage of the Champions League and they’ve worked hard to make it with qualifying wins over the champions of North Macedonia, Slovenia, Cyprus and Denmark.
They’ll be relishing the chance to continue their dream run in Scotland and nothing can be taken for granted. We need the Bhoys on top form to get off to a flyer.
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