After managing only a draw in their opening game in the Europa League, Celtic will be keen to get their first win of their European campaign this week when they take on SC Braga. The Portuguese side could end up providing a tough test for the Scottish champions though, especially with how shaky and unconvincing the Hoops have looked in recent weeks.
They got a 1-1 draw against Red Star Belgrade, after finishing only one of several good chances they had created for themselves early in the second half. It ended up costing them later on in the game, as a Kasper Schmeichel misjudgment left Marko Arnautovic with an open goal to score into.
Celtic must avoid both of these things in the second game if they want to win against SC Braga. This has been a staple of their European contests for a long time. Failing to take their own chances and then making bad errors on the other end of the pitch to make things easier for the opposition. Unsurprisingly, they have rarely won despite putting in some decent performances along the way.
The good news for Celtic is that SC Braga are in terrible form coming into the match as well. They lost 1-0 at home to Nacional at the weekend. And it is not their only stumble of the campaign so far.
Celtic handed good news before SC Braga match in Europa League
Overall, in seven league games, SC Braga have only won twice so far this season and find themselves in 7th place. Now, admittedly, they did a brilliant job, winning their Europa League opener against Feyenoord. So, Celtic cannot afford to make the mistake of taking them lightly.
All things considered, this promises to be a close matchup between two teams that are close in terms of quality. One can only hope that Celtic manage this contest well.
Celtic narrowly lost to Bayern Munich in a knockout phase game in the Champions League last season. So, this time around, the fans will be expected to see them get out of the first round at the very least.