Celtic hosts AZ Alkmaar in the first leg of the Europa League qualification final. The match will be played on Wednesday, August 18th at Celtic Park (Glasgow)
Celtic finished second in the previous Scottish Premiership and secured a ticket to the 2nd qualifying round of the Champions League. There the Celts lost to the Danish “Midtjylland” (1-1 and 1-2 after extra time) and got into the third qualifying round of the Europa League. In the two-legged confrontation, Celtic dealt with the Czech Jablonec (2-4 and 3-0). Starting the Scottish championship with a defeat to Hearts (1-2), Angelos Postecoglou's charges hammered Dundee (6- 0). On August 15, Celtic began its way in another tournament — the Scottish League Cup. And the Celts took revenge on Hearts in a home match (3-2). The victory for the Glasgow club was brought by goals from Odsonne Edouard, Stephen Welsh, and Kyugo Furuhashi.
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AZ Alkmaar finished 3rd in the Dutch Eredivisie in the 2020/21 season. Thanks to this, the club got the right to start from the final qualifying round of the Europa League. The debut in the new season turned out to be unsuccessful for the Cheese Farmers. On August 14, the footballers from Alkmaar unexpectedly lost to Walwijk away (1-0). The home team scored a goal in the locker room with the efforts of Michel Kramer. During most of the game, AZ Alkmaar put pressure on the opponent's penalty area. In 90 minutes, Jansen's charges delivered 21 shots on the lions' goal, but they still could not breach the defense of Waalwijk.
Celtic and Az Alkmaar will meet on the football field for the first time in history. The Celts will be the favorites of the first match in Scotland. They are in good shape, as they have been on a competitive schedule since the end of July. Against the background of AZ Alkmaar, which came out of vacation only last weekend, this gives the Celts an additional advantage. Beyond that, the footballers from Alkmaar have poor statistics in European away matches. The Cheese Farmers lost five of the last six games, having gained a victory over Napoli in the EL group stage in the 2020/21 season not without a share of luck (0-1). Celtic has never lost at home in official tournaments after their summer vacation. The Scots gained three victories and one draw, and there is a feeling that their winning trend will continue.
Prediction for the match: Celtic to win
