Celtic could be heading back to Greece in the third round of the Champions League IF they see off Nomme Kalju in the second qualifying round.
After last night’s win over FK Sarajevo the action comes thick and fast with the Estonian champions visiting Glasgow on Wednesday with the return leg six days later.
Celtic will be heavy favourites to see off Kalju but before the first leg they’ll know the identity of their third round opponents with the draw being made on Friday morning.
Results tonight mean Celtic will play one of the following in QR3.
PAOK
Cluj / Maccabi Tel Aviv
Ferencvaros / Valletta
Dundalk / Qarabag
Red Star Belgrade / HJK Helsinki
Maribor / AIK— Moravcik67 (@Moravcik67_) July 17, 2019
Two surprises tonight in CLQR1. Astana & Ludogorets both knocked out, meaning the APOEL tie becomes seeded for the QR3 draw on Monday.
Ludogorets were potential 3rd round opponents, Astana were potential playoff opponents.
— Moravcik67 (@Moravcik67_) July 17, 2019
A return to Greece would bring back memories of last season’s 3-2 defeat from AEK Athens which probably marked the low point of Brendan Rodgers’ reign. The failure to bring in any new players, Dedryck Boyata refusing to play and the knock on effects of the World Cup Finals all contributed to the exit following a 1-1 home draw in the first leg.
PAOK will be playing their first games of the season but that was the same situation as AEK were in 12 months ago. As the seeded side Celtic should be favourites to go through but with Maribor as possible opponents no one at Celtic will be taking anything for granted.