Celtic welcome BodØ/Glimt to Celtic Park in the first leg of their knockout play-off tie in 2021-22 UEFA Europa Conference League.
Celtic are entering at this stage of the Europa Conference League after finishing third in their Europa League group, whereas BodØ/Glimt have qualified for this round after finishing runner-up in Group C.
Team News
Josip Juranovic is set to return for Celtic after recovering from illness.
Mikey Johnston (hamstring) is a doubt but Albian Ajeti, David Turnbull and Kyogo Furuhashi (all hamstring) remain absent.
Karamoko Dembele could make his first appearance of the season after recovering from an ankle injury suffered during pre-season against Bristol City.
BodØ/Glimt have no fresh injury concerns to report but their top scorer, Erik Botheim is no longer at the club after his switch to FK Krasnodar in Russia.
Patrick Berg, Fredrik Andre Bjørkan, Pernambuco, Axel Lindahl, Marius Lode and Vegard Moberg have also left the club over winter.
Stat Attack
- This is Celtic’s first-ever meeting against BodØ/Glimt in all UEFA competitions.
- Celtic are unbeaten in five of six previous home matches against Norwegian opposition in all competitions (W4, D1, L1).
- BodØ/Glimt are visiting Scottish opposition for the very first time across all UEFA competitions.
- Celtic have scored first in five of their six home matches in all UEFA competitions this season.
- BodØ/Glimt have kept just one clean sheet in their last five away matches across all UEFA competitions (D4, L1).
Prediction
Since the conclusion of their Europa League campaign in December, Celtic have been in excellent form with no defeats and haven’t conceded in five home games so I am expecting them to really give this competition their best shot given the similar level quality overall.
BodØ/Glimt meanwhile haven’t played in over two months which will mean that they will be fresh but lacking in match fitness, which is something that Celtic must take advantage of early on especially with Botheim no longer BodØ/Glimt’s main threat up front.
On that note, I expect to see a tough fight here because the Norwegian team cannot be underestimated in attack despite their leaky defence, although I have a feeling that Celtic could get the job done here if they’re at their absolute best.
Prediction: Celtic 2-0 BodØ/Glimt
Result: Celtic 1-3 BodØ/Glimt
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