That Kairat Almaty defeat will still be ringing in Celtic fans’ ears.
Nearly 12 months on from Celtic missing out on Champions League football, the Scottish champions return to the same road that descended into chaos last time out.
This time, Martin O’Neill will be hoping to avoid what Brendan Rodgers couldn’t: playing Europa League football for a second campaign running.
Celtic’s squad may have just touched down in Portugal for their pre-season camp, but elsewhere across the continent, the gruelling journey to qualify for the Champions League is already well underway.
That includes the Hoops’ opponents for those dreaded qualifiers in August, with possible trips to Slovenia, Norway, Denmark, Austria and Cyprus on the horizon.
- READ MORE: UEFA makes red card call for players covering mouths as Celtic aim for Champions League return
🤔 Should Celtic buck the trend of not signing Scottish Premiership players and push to sign Josh Mulligan this summer?
Who could Celtic face in the Champions League play-offs?
The dates Celtic fans need to have pencilled in are: 18/19 and 25/26 of August. That’s when the two legs of their Champions League play-offs will take place.
Their opponents could be the following teams:
- NK Celje of Slovenia
- Viking FK of Norway
- AGF Aarhus of Denmark
- LASK Linz of Austria
- Omonia Nicosia of Cyprus
All these teams, bar Viking FK, are well underway with their pre-season plans, and in some cases, they started in June because of how early they have to play their qualifying matches.
But the unique situation with Viking FK is that they are well underway with their domestic season. This is despite Norway competing at this summer’s World Cup.
Norway were knocked out by England in extra-time of the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Saturday, but their domestic campaign started in March, with Viking currently sitting second in the table.
It needs to be noted that they have played ten matches, while others around them, such as league leaders Tromsø IL, have played 14 games, due to the number of players available to them because of World Cup commitments.
No excuses for Celtic…
Celtic have their first big signing through the door following the arrival of striker Camilo Duran.
If the champions of Scotland continue to add players of that quality and potential before those Champions League qualifiers come around, then the mood around Glasgow will be very positive.
It will be even more upbeat if O’Neill can guide the club back alongside Europe’s elite.
But there are no excuses not to get over the line now.
The likes of Dermot Desmond and Michael Nicholson will stand alone, humiliated, if the club fails, because they no longer have a Brendan Rodgers to blame.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
