Celtic learn their Champions League play-off fate - Kazakhstan or Slovakia
Celtic have been drawn against the winners of FC Kairat and Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League play-off round.
Celtic have been drawn against the winners of FC Kairat and Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League play-off round this morning in Nyon.
Celtic were drawn out the hat first, meaning the first leg will be played at Celtic Park, before travelling to either Kazakhstan or Slovakia for the second leg. Dates to be confirmed but the fixtures are set to be played on the 19/20 and 26/27 of August.
A familiar foe or an unknown quantity?
Celtic can certainly be happy with the draw as it was one of the easiest available to them, not that any game at this level can be considered as easy - especially with Celtic severely weakened since last season’s Champions League campaign.
Celtic have faced Slovan Bratislava twice - meeting back in the 1963-64 European Cup Winners' Cup, with Celtic emerging victorious with a 2-0 aggregate win. More recently, Celtic faced Slovan in the new Champions League league format last season, with a convincing 5-1 home victory.
On the other hand, FC Kairat is an unknown quantity to Celtic having never played the Kazakhstani side before. However, they are no strangers to teams from Kazakhstan, having overcome Shakhtar Karagandy and FC Astana in past Champions League qualifiers. While Celtic secured passage past both teams, the ties proved tricky and we needed big performances at Celtic Park to get over the line. A warning to the current hierachy that it won’t be as simple as just turning up with the current squad at our disposal.
The Financial Game-Changer
The true significance of this playoff goes beyond the teams we face. It is all about the new-look Champions League, which has been revamped to provide a massive financial boost to participating clubs. The new league format, which replaced the traditional group stage, has been a game-changer for Celtic.
Qualifying for the league format guarantees a minimum of £16 million, a substantial amount of money for the Scottish champions. This figure is just the beginning. The new format includes a new value pillar, which combines a club's historical coefficient ranking and broadcasting rights. For Celtic, this could mean an additional £15 million or thereabouts.
The new format also features an expanded eight matches for each team in the league phase. This not only means more opportunities for performance-related bonuses, but also guarantees an additional two home matches, which will generate significant extra matchday revenue from ticket sales and hospitality.
Last season’s Champions League campaign saw Celtic earn an estimated £40-50 million, not including matchday revenue. The financial rewards for qualification are unprecedented for a team like Celtic and yet the board are once again looking to gamble with their place in Europe’s elite club cup competition.
Sunday’s 1-0 win over St.Mirren may have been dominated by Celtic, but the failure to replace Kyogo SEVEN months after his departure, and the lack of quality and experienced signings to strengthen and add depth to the squad was telling and if this is not remedied within the next few weeks it will almost surely come back to bite the club hard on the arse.
If Celtic fail to reach the league format of the Champions League, blame will certainly fall on Brendan Rodgers and the Celtic players - yet the real culprits sit in the Celtic boardroom - men who have secured their positions through nepotism rather than through ambition and work excellence, who are clearly devoid of all ability to see the bigger picture rather focusing on the short term goal of increasing the bank balance like the good little bankers and accountants they are.
If the unthinkable does happen and Celtic fail to reach the Champions League proper, the Celtic hierarchy will be on the end of tens of thousands of restless natives baying for their blood. Now is not the time to gamble with Celtic’s future - if you want to penny pinch then leave the club and we’ll get someone else in to take your place. Someone with more ambition, someone who wants to take this club to bigger and better things.
Meanwhile, across the city Rangers [if they get past Viktoria Plzen] will play either RB Salzburg or Club Brugge. With the latter facing the Ibrox side this summer in a pre-season friendly drawing 2-2 - only after the Belgians put their youngsters on in the second half after being 2-0 up at half time.
Given Rangers’ lacklustre performances against Panathinaikos and Motherwell over the past week or two - both teams will be confident of progressing against Russell Martin’s side.
According to Paul Larkin it is in fact Dermot Desmond who is holding us back, it seems his investments have lost a bundle of money recently and it looks like Brendan has 6 potential signings Desmond's refusing to sanction.
I wish Desmond would just fuck off!!