Celtic v LASK
Celtic

Celtic vs LASK

, KO: 20:00 , Celtic Park
LASK

Celtic have made an impressive start to the season but now face the acid test as they go up against Austrian side LASK in the UEFA Champions League play-offs.

The Hoops were lucky to end up with a domestic Double last term after a chaotic campaign that saw Martin O'Neill taken out of cold storage for two spells as interim boss.

The 74-year-old rallied them for a thrilling finale and agreed to stay on in the summer as the squad underwent a big rebuild.

It took the board time to bring in new players but they've now added some quality in Camilo Duran, Kasper Hogh, Haissem Hassan and Mika Baur.

The Hoops have chalked up three domestic wins so far but now face a step up in class against the Austrian champions.

LASK held off Sturm Graz and RB Salzburg to rule the roost domestically last term and have started the new campaign with three successive wins.

Their last foray into Europe wasn't a success, finishing 35th in the Conference League table two seasons ago, but LASK have improved since then and could be a threat to the SPFL Premiership champions.

How the bookies view it: Power of Parkhead

Parkhead will bouncing for the first leg of this play-off tie and Bet365 make Celtic 13/20 hot favourites with home advantage. LASK are 7/2 outsiders and the draw is also pretty big at 11/4.

Head to head: FIrst-time foes

These sides have never faced off before but LASK have a mixed record against Scottish sides. They've lost twice to Dundee United and drawn with Partick Thistle but beat St Johnstone 3-1 on aggregate in the Conference League play-offs five years ago.

Players to watch: Hogh the main man

Celtic spent £11million to land Hogh from Bodo/Glimt and they will be hoping the striker repeats his heroics with the Norwegians in last season's Champions League. The Dane scored a hat-trick against Kilmarnock and could be worth a punt for anytime scorer once that market is priced up.

Samuel Adeniran has made a storming start to the season for LASK, netting four goals in three games. The American could get some joy against Celtic's defence and may be a decent price to score.

Probable line-ups

Celtic need to replace Arne Engels in midfield after his move to West Ham and new boy Baur looks the most likely candidate with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain suspended. Korean winger Yang Hjun-jun is a doubt after sitting out Saturday's win over Dundee United while defender Alistair Johnston is crocked.

LASK are sweating on skipper Sascha Horvath after he was taken off at half-time in their weekend win over SV Ried. Kasper Jorgensen and Adeniran also went off in that game but the star striker was only withdrawn as a precaution.

Celtic: Sinisalo, Donovan, Trusty, Carter-Vickers, Tierney, McGregor, Baur, Nygren, Yang, Duran, Hogh.

LASK: Jungwirth, Mbuyamba, Andrade, Alemao, Bello, Danek, Ljubicic, Kane, Horvath, Adeniran, Lang.

Anything else catch the eye?

Celtic kept a clean sheet at Tannadice at the weekend but it was more by luck than design, with Dundee United hitting the woodwork five times.

That makes me think LASK could get a bit of joy in Glasgow and combining BTTS with over 2.5 goals pays 7/5 with Bet365.

I'm expecting the Hoops to make a fast start with the crowd behind them and backing them to be ahead at half-time offer some value at 11/10 with Bet365.

Backing Celtic to score in both halves paid off for me at the weekend and the same bet for this game pays a decent 13/8.

Celtic vs LASK Betting Tips & Predictions
BTTS and over 2.5 goals
7/5
Bet365
Celtic to score in both halves
13/8
Bet365
Celtic to win the first half
11/10
Bet365
Further Reading
0 Comments

Leave a reply

Please play responsibly. For assistance with problem gambling please visit 18+ GambleAware

About MFT  | Journalist CharterSupport  |  Contact Us  | GambleAwarePrivacy Policy  | Terms of use | ©2026 North Star Network.

All betting odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.

Log in with your credentials

or    

Forgot your details?

Create Account