UEFA set to make crucial rule change that could affect Celtic as PSG win the Champions League

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Brendan Rodgers will give Celtic’s Champions League run, during the recently concluded campaign, a thumbs up.

UEFA revamped their format, ditching the old group stages and introducing a 36-team league phase in the hope of sparking the competition back into life.

Celtic reached the playoff stage, losing to Bayern Munich in Germany’s capital, but there was definite improvement from the team on Europe’s biggest stage.

But nobody made bigger strides than the champions of France, as PSG won their first Champions League title by outclassing Inter in the final in Munich.

Luis Enrique’s men beat Arsenal on their way to the final – playing the second leg at home – but things are now going to change ahead of next season.

• READ MORE: Where do Celtic rank in UEFA’s latest coefficient ranking after PSG win the Champions League 

What changes are UEFA set to make next season, as Celtic aim for Champions League qualification?

First of all, it needs to be noted that Celtic need to qualify for next season’s main competition, after Scotland’s coefficient took a bit of a hit.

If that happens, the aim will be to reach the knockout stages again, but Brendan Rodgers has to do it the hard way.

Unless Celtic finish really high up during the league phase, then, more than likely, they will play the second leg of the playoff/knockout rounds away from home.

German outlet Bild reports that teams finishing in the top eight will get ‘additional rewards’, including playing ‘second legs of the knockout rounds against lower-ranked teams at home’ – this previously only applied for the round of 16.

Other changes that UEFA were ‘not decided upon’

Let’s be honest, Celtic need all the help they can get, and the above rule change won’t help them, but you can’t argue against the powers that be introducing them because it is fair.

But one possible change – if it comes to fruition – that would help Scotland’s most successful club – is penalty shootouts instead of extra time.

Bild reports that taking away extra time, and going straight to penalties, was ‘not decided upon’, including teams from the same country meeting each other ‘early on’ in the knockout rounds.