It wouldn’t really be the Celtic way to qualify without some drama.
A 5-0 first leg lead should have made the second leg a formality, even at half time with the score at 1-1 qualification looked routine with the bonus of an away win to enjoy.
Five crazy minutes at the start of the second half turned all those predictions upside down, with 20 minutes left to play the unthinkable was passing through the thoughts of more than a few fans.
Fortunately Olivier Ntcham killed off the nightmare scenario but the 8-4 aggregate threw up as many questions as answers.
As supporters debate various issues one man has got a greater grasp than any other- that man is Brendan Rodgers.
The review of the match will be underway before the charter flight gets off the ground in Kazakhstan with some big decisions needing to be made.
In defence the Celtic boss will need to decide if there is adequate cover for Jozo Simunovic, if the former Dinamo Zagreb man is missing does he have confidence in the defenders currently at the club.
With a week left in the transfer window it’s likely that more than Patrick Roberts will be joining up, with more quality additions Rodgers hopes of European football after Christmas can be realised.
The powerful Frenchman was the outstanding player over the two matches and stood up to be counted while some of his team-mates started to wilt.
His performance level never dropped, when the group matches come around he’ll be more than capable of mixing it with the best midfielders in the business.
Even at half-time it all looked fairly straightforward but by the 50th minute watches were getting checked as fans thought ‘Surely Not’.
Fortunately there was a happy ending, with the match finishing after midnight locally there will be a few sessions late into the night as some closer to home trips are eagerly anticipated.
He had already had a few near things but there’s one goal that is Sinclair’s trademark- cutting in from the left then curling a right foot shot into the far post, usually around the postage stamp.
At that stage it looked like the launchpad for a welcome away win but the former Aston Villa man had been substituted by the time Olivier Ntcham cancelled the panic signs and booked our place in the group stage.
Within a month he looks like the heart-beat of the team. Providing the muscle and craft in midfield, breaking up opponents in possession and showing a neat line in finishing even if his two goals have involved heavy deflections.
Most fans wouldn’t have thought about strengthening the midfield but you can never get too much of a good thing with the French u-21 internationalist a definite touch of class.
After his first leg heroics it would have been cruel to pin blame on Griffiths but after taming the cross from the left his shot ballooned over the bar.
He could have let his head sink, it probably did when Astana pulled it back to to 6-4 on aggregate but in the final minutes he showed great control to drill in the final goal of a crazy night as the group stage draw came into view.