Certainly, Crimson Star had solely two appearances within the Uefa Cup group stage to dine on throughout 20 years from 1995 after sanctions prevented Yugoslav golf equipment from coming into European competitors.
In recent times, the Serbian champions have begun to search out their ft once more with 4 Champions League appearances over the past seven seasons.
Nonetheless, like Europa League match-day one foes Celtic, they had been surprised by unfancied opponents within the play-offs for Uefa's premier match as Cypriots Pafos ended Crimson Star's hopes of a 3rd successive marketing campaign on the prime desk.
Brendan Rodgers will lead his Celtic facet into some of the intimidating arenas in Europe after they enter the imposing Rajko Mitic Stadium.
The hosts' failure to get into the Champions League was triggered, partly, by promoting a whole lot of the household silver in the summertime as they introduced in additional than £40m, together with the gross sales of 18-year-old pair Velijko Milosavlejvic to Bournemouth and Andrija Maksimovic to RB Leipzig.
Nonetheless, there stays lots for Celtic to concern themselves with.
None extra so than veteran Aleksandar Katai, who has already amassed 12 targets in 13 video games from midfield having scored 19 final time period as they racked up an eighth successive Serbian title.
On Saturday night, as they defeated neighbours and bitter rivals Partizan within the ‘Everlasting Derby', Katai fashioned a part of an attacking 4 with highly-rated 17-year-old Vasilije Kostov, Montenegro worldwide Mirko Ivanic, who has seven targets himself this time period, and former West Ham United and Stoke Metropolis striker Marko Arnautovic.
The latter arrived on the membership in the summertime amid a sea of emotion having promised his former Bolonga head coach and Crimson Star nice Mihajlovic that he would signal for the membership earlier than the tip of his profession.
Mihajlovic died of leukaemia in 2022 and Austrian Arnautovic was in tears at his personal unveiling as he regaled the story because it got here true.
For Celtic, this shall be one other main take a look at of their poor away European kind as they give the impression of being to begin their Europa League marketing campaign in a constructive method and taking up a facet that has, extremely, misplaced simply 5 league video games up to now 5 seasons.
It is usually a membership that's determined to shine brightly on the continental stage as soon as extra.
