What should Celtic expect from 'big underdogs' Slovan Bratislava

Two years aft Celtic's finest infinitesimal successful 1967, came Slovan Bratislava's top day.

The Slovak giants, past portion of the erstwhile Czechoslovakia, slayed the large Barcelona astatine Basel's St Jakob Stadium successful 1969 to assistance the Cup Winners' Cup, their solitary European honour to date.

Their semi-final opponents that play were the then-Scottish Cup holders Dunfermline Athletic, who themselves had a memorable continental run that twelvemonth arsenic they brushed speech the likes of Olympiacos and West Bromwich Albion to get to the past four.

Despite pushing a Slovan broadside afloat of Czech internationals - who would look astatine the pursuing year's World Cup successful Mexico - the Pars mislaid retired narrowly, going down 2-1 connected aggregate.

And the remainder is past for Slovakia's Sky Blues; they reason it was the astir memorable infinitesimal successful Czechoslovakian shot history.

It is simply a nine that has since struggled successful Europe, though determination person been caller flickers of beingness with Europa League and Conference League campaigns, with the astir caller successful the second producing knock-out European tourney football.

Like Celtic, Slovan person been the ascendant unit astatine home, winning each of the past six Slovakian titles with a 16-point chasm betwixt they and nearest challengers Zilina past season.

They are apical of the embryonic Fortuna Liga array this play contempt suffering a spectacular 5-0 location thrashing by past term's runners-up earlier the September planetary break.

As acold arsenic Champions League fixtures go, Celtic whitethorn ne'er person had a amended accidental to triumph their opening crippled of the tourney due for the archetypal clip since its 1990s rebrand.

Slovan are beardown astatine home, but this is the archetypal clip they person qualified for the Champions League astatine the 12th clip of asking.

They are 1 of 5 tourney debutants successful the new-look competition, and astatine a afloat Celtic Park nether the lights, it would beryllium a large stroke if the Scottish champions don't triumph this crippled and boost their ain hopes arsenic good arsenic the flagging Scottish co-efficient.

It was a marathon qualification run for Slovan to adjacent scope this point.

Vladimir Weiss' broadside emerged from 4 ties, beating the Danish champions Midtjylland successful the play-off to yet marque the leap onto the large stage.

Weiss - who is hoping to flooded a microorganism to marque the travel to Glasgow - has erstwhile erstwhile it comes to shocking Celtic having been successful complaint of Artmedia Bratislava erstwhile they infamously ruined Gordon Strachan's bow astatine the nine successful 2005.

Strachan had conscionable replaced Martin O'Neill and contempt their second-leg heroics, the 5-0 nonaccomplishment successful Slovakia saw them knocked retired of Europe altogether.

Weiss' lad Vladimir inferior had a profitable indebtedness astatine Rangers successful the 2010-11 season, mounting up Nikica Jelavic for the winning extremity successful the League Cup last against Celtic. He volition beryllium hoping to get the accidental to renew acquaintances successful his last run earlier retirement.

The visitors whitethorn deficiency Champions League acquisition but they don’t deficiency big-game experience.

Robert Mak and Juraj Kucka are European title veterans with Slovakia.

The erstwhile scored doubly against Strachan's Scotland successful 2018 World Cup qualifying during a 3-0 triumph successful Trnava, portion the second starred against England successful the past 16 of Euro 2024 wherever the Slovaks came wrong seconds of knocking the eventual runners-up retired of the tournament.

Indeed, striker David Strelec, who started each 4 successful Germany, acceptable up their extremity against Gareth Southgate's squad and has 5 successful 13 truthful acold this season.

Defender Guram Kashia started each crippled for the Georgia broadside that entertained truthful galore astatine the Euros and has faced Scotland 3 times successful the past portion his centre-back spouse Kenan Bajric has conscionable forced his mode backmost into the Slovenia nationalist squad.

The antheral to ticker is Armenia planetary Tigran Barseghyan who has scored 8 times successful 12 appearances this term. He was progressive successful 29 goals past term, scoring 15 himself.

Regardless, this is not Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich oregon Barcelona that Celtic volition beryllium facing and contempt home heroics, Slovan travel to Glasgow arsenic large underdogs.

Watch highlights of each Champions League crippled from 22:00 connected Wednesday connected BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app.

There volition besides beryllium a Champions League Match of the Day connected BBC One connected Wednesday, from 22:40 to 00:00.