BODO/GLIMT bust a few coupons with their Europa Conference League win at Celtic Park and will be confident of finishing the job when the Hoops head to Norway.
Like most people, I fancied Ange Postecoglou's side to defeat a Bodo team coming out of cold storage last Thursday in the first leg of their play-off tie.
But instead it was Celtic who looked like they hadn't played for a while as the Norwegians claimed a deserved 3-1 win to put one foot in the last 16.
The Parkhead men have been excellent on the road this season but Postecoglou will be worried with how vulnerable his side have been at the back in the last two games.
Celtic shipped two more goals to struggling Dundee at home on Sunday and needed a late goal from Giorgos Giakoumakis to claim a 3-2 victory.
So while it wouldn't be a surprise to see Postecoglou's men score twice in Norway you wouldn't trust their defence to claim a clean sheet against a Bodo/Glimt side who battered Roma 6-1 in the group stage.
How the bookies view it
After their Parkhead triumph, Bodo/Glimt are a tiny 1/33 with SBK to qualify while Celtic are as big as big as 17/4 with McBookie. The odds on the night are in stark contrast to that, however, with the Hoops 6/5 favourites at Ladbrokes and the Norwegians a generous 15/8 with SBK. The draw pays 5/2 with the same firm.
Team news
BodoGlimt will be without goalkeeper Nikita Haikin after a yellow card for time wasting in the first leg pushed him over a disciplinary threshold. Celtic have no fresh injury concerns but midfielder Reo Hatate and striker Giakoumakis should start after coming off the bench in the Parkhead loss (below).
Players to watch
Winger Amahl Pellegrino impressed at Celtic Park for Bodo/Glimt and crowned his performance with a goal. The 31-year-old is 15/8 at Paddy Power for anytime scorer back on home soil.
Giakoumakis should lead the line for the Hoops after his matchwinning hat-trick against Dundee at the weekend. The Greek is 13/8 for another goal in Norway with Paddy Power and 15/2 with McBookie to score a header.
Anything else catch the eye?
Backing Celtic corners continues to be a profitable pursuit and I cashed in by tipping them for over 8.5 against Dundee on Sunday. The Hoops ended up with 11 and could rack up more here as they need to chase the game.
They were 22/25 with Unibet to win most corners earlier in the week but those odds have now plummeted to a best 2/7 with SportingIndex. Likewise, the Hoops were 13/10 at Bet365 in the corner handicap at -1 on Monday but now the best price is 4/9 with William Hill. The best option now might be over 10.5 corners at 17/20 (SportingIndex).
Celtic had the worst defensive record in the Europa League group stage, shipping 15 in six games, and lost another three to Bodo/Glimt in Glasgow. They have to go for it in Norway and that should lead to plenty of goalmouth action.
Over 3.5 goals stands a chance at 7/5 with Paddy Power while over 1.5 first-half goals also looks decent at 13/10 with Coral.
Carl Starfelt is still guilty of diving into challenges and conceded the free-kick that led to Dundee's leveller on Sunday. The Swede is 16/5 with McBookie for a card here and that looks generous.
This UEFA Europa League Conference match between Bodo/Glimt and Celtic will be played on Feb 24, 2022 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best Bodo/Glimt vs Celtic prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
Hi Kev when did you get on the -1 corner handicap with Bet365 as it is now -3 @ 10/11 and the Unibet price is 1/5??
It was at that price on Oddschecker when I wrote up the preview on Monday night. Was surprised to see it at such a good price and think they’ve now realised the error of their ways
Just updated the odds and noticed the price on Celtic winning most corners has tumbled as well. Bookies have been back pedalling