Celtic are due to open their Champions League campaign on the 18th of September with a home tie against Slovan Bratislava this month.
The Celtic Park fixture should give Brendan Rodgers a great chance of starting the tournament with a win as the Hoops boss looks to improve the Parkhead club’s record amongst Europe’s elite.
And whilst Bratislava is not known as one of Europe’s biggest clubs, getting a win against the Slovakian side is not going to be easy after assistant boss, Timotej Vajdik, shared how his team went about beating Danish champions FC Midtjylland to earn their place in group stages.
Bratislava’s Champions League tactics
Celtic have previous history against Midtjylland after they knocked Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic out of the Champions League with a 3-2 aggregate win in the second-round qualifier in 2021.
And Vajdik said that the Danes were naive as they tried to negotiate past his side to get into the lucrative league phase of the competition.
Vajdik told Hospodárske Noviny, “I would say that they defended naively. Maybe they underestimated the situations from which they scored, as they were aware of their offensive strength.
“However, Midtjylland defended really badly in the deep block. Every team has drawn four or five penalty corners against them this season. And it’s definitely not a coincidence.
“We wanted to create two-on-two or three-on-two situations in the wing area through rushes and short combinations.
“It was important to use the space in the far vertical between their full-back and the stopper, where the opponents often had free space.”
This is a great insight into how Bratislava could line up against Celtic and it serves as a warning to the Hoops fullbacks and wingers that they will have to be on their mettle to ensure they are not caught out as Midtjylland were as they succumbed to a 4-3 aggregate defeat to the Slovakian champions.
The Danes were 2-1 up and cruising in the first leg in Slovakia when Bratislava scored two late goals to take a slim lead to Denmark.
However, the Slovakian side proved a tough nut to crack in the return leg after Vajdik side took a surprise 1-0 lead in Demark before Midtjylland drew level late into the game.
Bratislava held on for the draw and their reward is now to open up their foray with Europe’s elite with an opening fixture at a packed Celtic Park.
Bratislava prepare for Celtic Park visit
Many Celtic fans will be confident that their team has what it takes to get an early three points on the board.
But Vajdik shares how he is preparing for the trip to Glasgow to ensure his team can get a positive result.
Vajdik continued, “At the moment I am only analysing in detail our first opponent in the Champions League, which will be Celtic Glasgow. However, each team has some weaknesses.”
Thankfully, Celtic have not shown much in terms of a weakness in their opening five domestic games this season so far so hopefully, the Bratislava coach is struggling to pinpoint any weakness within Brendan Rodgers’ side and Celtic can come away with three points in just over ten days time.
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