Despite having thoughts trained on Cluj and Wednesday’s match in Romania, at 11am this morning Celtic will be given a distraction as the Play Off draw takes place for the Champions League.
Memories of Athens last season remain fresh and raw but it’s only natural to take a look at what would be the final hurdle towards a return to the group phase of the Champions League.
Celtic/Cluj will be seeded for this round which avoids a nightmare draw against Ajax or PAOK but that level of opponent demonstrates the absolute necessity to maintain the co-efficient to take some of the sting out of the lengthy qualification process.
Young Boys of Bern and Slavia Prague go straight into the Play Off round but aren’t seeded which means that they have won highly rated leagues even though their own co-efficient is inferior to Celtic’s.
What appears to be the gentler part of the draw consists of APOEL/Qarabag or Maribor/Rosenborg but either of those sides will be match sharp after coming through the qualifying process.
The draw kicks off at 11am Celtic Park Time and will be covered live on the UEFA website, as soon as it’s over all eyes return to Cluj, later on the Play Off draw will be made for the Europa League which will also include Celtic/Clujj.
CLICK HERE to follow the draw on the UEFA website.
