THIS is not where they wanted to be.

The allure of the group stages of the Europa League is soured by disappointment for both Celtic and FC Salzburg. The whispered words of Maribor and Malmo, the sides who condemned the champions of Scotland and Celtic to play in Europe's secondary tournament, produce a blanched expression on the faces of the respective club accountants and the deepest sigh of resignation from the support.

Yet both sides are strong representatives of the leagues that time forgot. The might of Austria and Scotland has waned, with the Europa League providing succour in the way that a goal in a 5-1 defeat is described as "a consolation".

More than 30,000 spectators will tonight watch Celtic try to join Salzburg in the knockout round. The Europa League may then attract the attention of the mass of their support.

Adi Hutter, the head coach of Salzburg, neatly sidestepped the possibility of either Celtic or Salzburg winning the tournament, gently pointing out that the third best teams in the group stages of the Champions League will soon join his team in the knockout stages.

The unspoken reality is that UEFA's awarding of a Champions League place to the winners of the competition has caused it to be taken more seriously by contenders, notably such as Everton, Borussia Moenchengladbach, Napoli and Inter Milan.

This is a competition that becomes more important and it is a tournament that will be stronger after Christmas.

The two clubs have adhered to that theme of improvement. Hutter spoke last night of playing Celtic when his side's confidence was low. Ronny Deila, too, has known moments of turbulence in his brief career at Celtic.

The vagaries of the group mean he could be the losing manager at Celtic Park tonight and still go through to the latter stages. Celtic certainly face a stronger, more cohesive unit than the Salzburg side that drew at home with the Scottish champions in September.

The Austrians will be without Isaac Vorsah (knee), Valon Berisha (knee), Rodnei (adductors), Nils Quaschner (thigh) and Valentino Lazaro (thigh). Andreas Ulmer is suspended.

Hutter, though, has watched his side improve steadily and was dismissive of any comparison with the tie in his homeland.

"Celtic played a similar style to us in Salzburg but our confidence wasn't so good in that match because we lost our Champions League qualifier and two games in the league. But since then we've had nine wins in 12 games so the confidence is high again."

The sense of ease supplied by qualification could also galvanise Salzburg to display fully their free-flowing, aggressive style.

The Salzburg manager made it clear he and his team were not afraid of playing at Celtic Park in a hostile atmosphere. The precise influence of such factor has always been questionable but is particularly so when the ground will be half full.

The prize on offer for Hutter is limited to finishing top of the group but he conceded the danger posed by a Celtic side who have still to qualify.

"Celtic play the ball well and in a way are not a very typical Scottish team. They have very good individual players and showed their quality when they came to Salzburg," said Hutter.

"We hope to play a good game and the most important thing is that we show the people our style. We know Celtic are a good team and the home support might be an advantage for them but we are not afraid of the spectators. We have come here to win the game."

Hutter is aware, too, of the history of Austrian teams in Scotland. Not one has won in club competition in Scotland against a variety of opponents that includes Aberdeen, Celtic, Rangers, Dundee United, Hearts and Livingston.

He referred to this record but added that he was determined to change in his first managerial season at European level after taking over from Roger Schmidt who left for Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the summer.

He has a considerable asset in Jonatan Soriano, the 29-year-old Spaniard, who has already scored five goals in the group stage and is relishing the chance to add more.

"It's an honour and great to play at Celtic Park," he said with commendable politeness. "We are highly motivated to win."

His cv includes a Copa del Rey with Espanol and a place in the squad that was runners-up the UEFA Cup in 2006-2007. He was also good enough to win 25 caps for under-age level for Spain.

He may have believed he was destined for better things. So did Celtic and Salzburg at the beginning of the season.

The group stages of the Europa League are not where they want to be. Salzburg can now contemplate the relative glamour and a lucrative tie in the knockout stages. Celtic have work to do to follow them.