Celtic in the Champions League: New format explained and the draw

It's not just the transfer window closing that makes this a big week for Celtic. Of course, we all want to see new players being signed and arriving in Glasgow before the end of deadline day. The signs are promising that we’ll witness that happening very soon. A club-record deal for Arne Engels is believed to have been agreed and a few other players appear to be in the Hoops' sights as well.

This week also saw the next big phase in this season's new format UEFA Champions League. The draw takes place on Thursday, August 29 in Monaco. We now know who Celtic will face in Europe in eight rather than the six games in the previous iteration of the competition.

That is one of the big changes the Hoops will see this season as the new Champions League format starts. Instead of eight groups of four teams each, it is a single 36-team league this season. Naturally, the change has been somewhat controversial and confusing at the same time.

The draw has paired Celtic with eight different teams. They will play four of those at Parkhead and the other four away from home. And one has to say, luck appears to have been on the Hoops' side for a change.

Celtic and the new format UEFA Champions League

Here are the fixtures that await Celtic in the Champions League this season: RB Leipzig (H), Borussia Dortmund (A), Club Brugge (H), Atalanta (A), Young Boys (H), Dinamo Zagreb (A), Slovan Bratislava (H) and Aston Villa (A). At least four of those look like winnable games for Brendan Rodgers' side.

To progress further to the knockout rounds that follow Celtic would need to either be in the top eight of the league to go directly into the round of 16, or finish between 9th and 24th to reach a two-legged play-off stage. The winners of those playoffs go through to the round of 16. It's not going to be easy, it never is, but the new format might help the Hoops.

Celtic fans would have been hoping to see some glamour ties against high-profile teams and have gotten one in the form of last season's finalists, Borussia Dortmund. Watching the Hoops play in front of the Yellow Wall will be a memorable experience for sure and hopefully, a positive result follows. On paper, this looks like a mix of teams where they can pick up points and achieve a league position from which they can progress.