Celtic will play their first Champions League knockout match for 12 years when they welcome German giants Bayern Munich to Glasgow on Wednesday night.
The new league phase format in the competition worked wonders for Celtic, but not for Bayern, who face the prospect of not reaching the last 16 of the competition for the first time in over two decades.
Match preview
© Imago
With the Champions League only really just getting into the business end, Bayern are already on the brink of making unwanted history, following a disappointing start to their European campaign.
Vincent Kompany's men have lost three times on the road in the Champions League this season, and Bayern have never lost four away games in a single European campaign before.
A narrow defeat at Aston Villa followed by thrashings at Barcelona and Feyenoord saw Bayern miss out on the top eight and automatic progression to the last 16, despite a perfect home record.
The Bavarians have reached the last 16 in 16 straight Champions League campaigns, with their last failure to do so being the only time they have been eliminated before that stage since the competition's rebranding - when they were knocked out in the group stage in a section containing AC Milan, Deportivo La Coruna and Lens in 2002.
There is nothing wrong with their output in the final third, scoring 20 goals in their eight league phase matches, but Bayern only managed two clean sheets, and even conceded at home to both Dinamo Zagreb and Slovan Bratislava.
A leaky defence almost cost them in astonishing fashion at the start of the month against Holstein Kiel too, conceding three late goals in a narrow 4-3 win, but Kompany's men put that right with a routine 3-0 victory over Werder Bremen at the weekend to go eight points clear at the Bundesliga summit.
Facing Scottish opposition has been favourable for Bayern over the past few decades, going 13 games unbeaten since a defeat in 1989 at Hearts in the UEFA Cup, and four of those games have been against Celtic.
Bayern won home and away against Celtic in the group stages back in 2017, but were held to a 0-0 draw here in 2003.
A 0-0 draw would be an excellent result on paper for Celtic, but it may not do them much good in their chances of progression, considering they would then need to go and win at the Allianz Arena.
© Imago
Without a win against Bayern in their history, and just one in 21 against past winners of the Champions League, there is little down for the hosts, but they did finally claim a first win against a German club in Europe during the league phase, beating RB Leipzig 3-1 at Celtic Park.
More history needs to be changed if they are to advance here, because Celtic have lost all three knockout ties in the Champions League, with their most recent being a 5-0 aggregate loss to Juventus in 2013.
The Hoops reached the last 16 in back-to-back seasons in 2007 and 2008, but again, European royalty stood in their way, as AC Milan and Barcelona eliminated them, and a similar mountain to climb is ahead of them here.
But with 6-0 and 5-0 wins at home against Dundee and Raith Rovers in the past week, there will be no shortage of confidence, and Celtic are still unbeaten at home in Europe this season.
The win over Leipzig contributed to a record of 10 points from their four home games in the league phase, and there will need to be a similarly heroic performance to the one Celtic enjoyed against Barcelona in this competition back in 2012 if they are to have any chance ahead of the second leg.
Team News
© Imago
Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers will make many changes again here after heavy rotation in the cup win over Raith at the weekend, with Adam Idah set to return in the hope of extending his superb recent run that has seen him score four in three games.
Daizen Maeda scored a hat trick against Raith but will be suspended here after his straight red card against Young Boys on matchday seven, meaning Yang Hyun-jun may start instead.
Jota is still building up his fitness after 18 months without kicking a ball, while Paulo Bernardo is set to join James Forrest on the sidelines after being forced off in the first half against Raith.
Joao Palhinha and Serge Gnabry are both doubts after missing Bayern's weekend win through illness, while Alphonso Davies remains out with a hamstring issue after recently signing a contract extension at the club.
Kompany resisted the urge to rotate at the weekend, getting the job with a full-strength side, and it could look almost identical here, with Harry Kane set to lead the line on his return to the British Isles.
Leroy Sane scored off the bench against Bremen, but Michael Olise and Kingsley Coman are the most likely pair to start out wide, and the latter netted in the last meeting between the sides seven-and-a-half years ago.
Celtic possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Trusty, Taylor; Engels, McGregor, Hatate; Kuhn, Idah, Yang
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Neuer; Laimer, Upamecano, Kim, Guerreiro; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Coman, Musiala, Olise; Kane
We say: Celtic 0-2 Bayern Munich
Celtic have been excellent at home in Europe this season, but all three wins came against sides who were eliminated in the league phase, and Bayern represent a huge step up in quality.
Despite losing three of their four away games in the league phase, Bayern will be confident of progressing even if they lose narrowly here, given their excellent home record, but Kompany's men should be able to silence the raucous home atmosphere and take a commanding lead into the second leg.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
