It is almost time for Celtic's two biggest matches of the year. On the day that the Scottish Premiership champions begin their title defence against Dundee, the Hoops discovered their first European opponents of the campaign.
Martin O'Neill's team will take on LASK in the Champions League play-off round. So, is this a good draw? Here is what you need to know.
UEFA Champions League play-off round draw
Champions path
- Celtic vs LASK
- Levski Sofia or Kairat vs AEK Athens.
- GNK Dinamo Zargeb or Kauno Žalgiris or Viking.
- ŠK Slovan Braslava or Mjällby AIF vs Ararat-Armenia or NK Celje.
- Crvena zvezda or Hapoel Be'er Sheva vs Aarhus Gymnastikforening or Sabah.
League path
- Fenerbahçe or Sturm Graz vs Sparta Prague or Olympique Lyonnais.
- Olympiacos vs NEC Nijmegen or Royale Union Saint-Gilloise or Bodø/Glimt.
When do the Champions League play-off round fixtures take place?
- First legs: Tuesday 18 and Wednesday 19 August.
- Second legs: Tuesday 25 and Wednesday 16 August.
Celtic will play their first leg at Parkhead and the second leg at Raiffeisen Arena in Linz. The match calendar will be released by UEFA later on Monday.
Everything you need to know about LASK
LASK won the Austrian Bundesliga for the first time since 1965 last season. In the intervening six decades, they only finished second once, but have become European regulars of late. Since 2019, die Schwarz-Weißen have featured in three Europa League and two Conference League group stage or league phases. Their best runs have been to the round of 16, dumped out by Manchester United in the Europa League in 2020 and Slavia Prague from the Conference League two years later.
Thus, victory in this tie would see LASK qualify for the Champions League proper for the first time in their history. Their only two appearances in Europe's premier club competition to date saw them beaten by Górnik Zabrze in the preliminary round in 1965 and Club Brugge in the play-off round in 2019, so to say they will be up for this tie would be an understatement.
Like Celtic, Dietmar Kühbauer's team enter Europe this season in the play-off round. Their Austrian Bundesliga title defence began on Friday night, beating Grazer AK 3-0; Samuel Adeniran scoring twice, before Christoph Lang secured victory later on. Their next two matches are against Austria Wien and SV Reid, travelling to Wolfsberger AC in-between the two legs against Celtic.
LASK's stadium the Raiffeisen Arena is brand-new, opening in 2023, built on the site of the old Linzer Stadion, which had been their home since 1952. At home in European competition, die Schwarz-Weißen have lost only five of 29 matches since the start of the new millennium. These defeats have come against Club Brugge, Manchester United, Royal Antwerp, Liverpool and Toulouse.
Their only encounter with a Scottish club during this period saw them oust St Johnstone in the Conference League play-off round five years ago, held to 1-1 draw at their temporary home in Klagenfurt, before a 2-0 victory at McDiarmid Park. LASK though were dumped out of the UEFA Cup by Jim McLean's Dundee United in 1984, hammered 5-1 at Tannadice.
Considering LASK's imperious recent home record, it will be vital for Celtic to claim a first leg victory when the pair meet in Glasgow in little over two weeks time. This is probably the toughest possible draw the Hoops could have been handed, so O'Neill's team will need to be at their best to reach the Champions League league phase.
If not, it could be yet more play-off round heartbreak for all Celts everywhere. Let's all hope LASK is not the latest name added to a list that features Maribor, Malmö, AEK Athens, CFR Cluj, Ferencváros, Midtjylland, Kairat and many more.
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