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Match preview

Celtic certainly earned plenty of plaudits as they made their Champions League return, but now they need points on the board.

On the competition’s opening night, the Hoops ended their five-year exile, welcoming Real Madrid to Parkhead.

For 55 minutes or so, the Celts were the side creating the more clear-cut chances.

Liel Abada shot straight at the goalkeeper, Callum McGregor’s sweet strike thwacked the post and then Daizen Maeda couldn’t turn home a Josip Juranović pull-back.

Then, either side of the hour-mark, the Spanish champions took the game away from Celtic, scoring twice before rubber stamping the victory late on with a third.

The 3-0 Real Madrid victory does not accurately reflect the balance of play, but the Hoops were punished in both boxes.

In this group, Shakhtar Donetsk were supposed to be the whipping boys, having had their squad decimated as a result of the Russian invasion.

Thus, the Miners’ 4-1 victory in Germany over RB Leipzig on matchday one was certainly a surprise wasn’t it?

Former Celt Marian Shved bagging the brace, the first thanks to a calamitous goalkeeping error, before star attackers Mykhaylo Mudryk and Lassina Traoré sealed it late on.

The Ukrainian Champions finished bottom of their group with just two points last season, but have already bettered that.

If Igor Jovićević’s team win this one too, Shakhtar will be in a great position to reach the Champions League knockout rounds for the first time since 2017/18.

Due to the ongoing invasion, this game will take place at Stadion Wojska Polskiego, home of Legia Warszawa.

Will the Celtic supporters who make the pilgrimage to Warsaw be celebrating just the club’s third Champions League away win since the competition’s rebrand 30 years ago?