Competitive football has rolled around early for Celtic once again as they begin their quest to reach the Champions League with a first-round qualifier in Sarajevo.
Neil Lennon’s side have been back in training for a couple of weeks and have three friendly matches under their belts before this clash against the Bosnian champions.
The Scottish ‘treble-treble’ winners start as strong favourites but this early in the season, there is no such thing as an easy match.
| Game | Sarajevo vs Celtic |
| Date | Tuesday, July 9 |
| Time | 6:45pm BST / 1:45pm ET |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be streamed via Celtic TV.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| n/a | Celtic TV |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be broadcast on Premier Sports 1 and can be streamed via Premier Player HD.
Next Match
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Premier Sports 1 | Premier Player HD |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Sarajevo squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Kovacevic, Dizdarevic, Adilovic |
| Defenders | Lazic, Serbecic, Dupovac, Kurdic, Sabanovic, Hodzic, Salcinovic |
| Midfielders | Djokanovic, Gavric, Mustafic, Oremus, Hebibovic, Sisic, Rahmanovic, Salcin |
| Forwards | Tatar, Milanovic, Nathan, Velkoski, Ahmetovic, Guzina, Handzic, Crnicki, Da Cruz |
Sarajevo are without defensive duo Amer Dupovac and Selmir Pidro. Additional, new signing Bojan Letic is unavailable to debut in the rearguard, leaving a major headache at left-back.
Milos Stanojevic is absent from midfield.
Possible Sarajevo starting XI: Kovacevic; Sabanovic, Lazic, Serbecic, Hodzic; Rahmanovic, Mustafic; Oremus, Velkoski, Tatar; Ahmetovic
| Position | Celtic squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Gordon, Bain, Mullen, Doohan, Hazard |
| Defenders | Bolingoli-Mbombo, Simunovic, Jullien, Ralston, Church, Deas, McInroy, Welsh, Ajer |
| Midfielders | Brown, Christie, Sinclair, Ntcham, McGregor, Morgan, Kouassi, Arzani, Bitton, Forrest, Kennedy, Henderson, Mckay |
| Forwards | Griffiths, Bayo, Edouard, Hayes, Johnston, Miller, Mcgrath, Savoury, Aitchison, Dembele |
Ukraine international Marian Shved, signed from Karpaty Lviv in January but immediately loaned back to the club, will miss out on making his competitive debut due to a training ground injury.
Jack Hendry is also sidelined for Neil Lennon’s side, while Tom Rogic and Kieran Tierney are still doing rehab.
Christopher Jullien and Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo have both travelled with the squad, having recently arrived at the club.
Olivier Ntcham has been named in the squad, despite insisting he wants to leave the club.
New signing Luca Connell is in Ireland's U19 European Championships squad and cannot take part.
It is anticipated that Lennon will name a starting XI similar to the one that played in a 0-0 draw with St Gallen last week, meaning Odsonne Edouard is set to feature ahead of Leigh Griffiths.
Possible Celtic starting XI: Bain; Ralston, Ajer, Simunovic, Bolingoli-Mbombo; Brown, McGregor; Forrest, Christie, Sinclair; Edouard
Betting & Match Odds
Celtic are strong 4/9 favourites to win this match with Bet365. A draw is priced at 16/5, while a Sarajevo win is available at 13/2.
Match Preview
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After missing out on the Champions League last season, Celtic are determined to break their way back into Europe’s elite for the 2019-20 campaign.
The road for the Hoops is a long one, with three qualifying fixtures plus a play-off to negotiate if they are to get back among the big boys. While it means that Neil Lennon’s side have a gruelling schedule to begin the season, the spin-offs, such as the money and the return of big European nights, make the work amply worth it.
Sarajevo is their first stop this summer, though fortune has smiled on them to some extent as what could have been a roasting night in Bosnia is set to be rather clement in terms of temperature, while the rain forecast for the match may even help the Scots.
While Lennon’s side will take any aid going into such an important match, they go into the game high in confidence after a successful training camp in Austria, where they played four friendlies and won three.
Nevertheless, having had relatively recent experience of losing to Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar away from home in 2016, this is a match that the Celts will take nothing for granted in.
“These are the most difficult games,” said the manager. “The Champions League and everything that comes with it is brilliant, but the hard work is getting there. We could have had an easier draw, but the guys know what the incentives are and they know what’s at stake.
“I’ve had experience in the Champions League during my time at Celtic, as have these players. Qualification is one of our priorities. We know it’s a difficult road to travel but it's one we’re prepared and ready for.
“The experience that I’ve had will stand us in good stead, and as a core group, these players know what to expect. I think it’s harsh that we need to play four qualifiers but we have to accept that.
“It’s almost as good as winning a trophy, qualifying for the Champions League. This is the first step in hopefully achieving that. The game will sway to and fro and they’re going to be tight. We’ve no divine right to get into the Champions League, but from our perspective it’d be massive for the club to qualify.”
Sarajevo, meanwhile, won the Premijer Liga ahead of Zrinjski by five points last season, but have lost both of their friendly matches this summer, going down to Slovacko and Domzale.
They showed some pedigree in Europe last season, however, by drawing 2-2 with Atalanta in Bergamo, although they conceded eight in the second leg.
The Bosnians are big underdogs, but they are not to be underestimated.
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