The opportunity comes laced with jeopardy for Celtic.
Gaining access to the Champions League is a source of wealth, and there is the added attraction that it provides an escape from a domestic scene that suddenly looks mundane without the Old Firm jousting with each other for the Scottish Premier League title. Yet failing to progress would threaten to suppress any sense of anticipation around the club.
Nobody would expect the first competitive fixture of the season to be so influential, but factors have combined to make tonight's visit of HJK Helsinki seem a critical event. Neil Lennon will always reject the assumption that his side will inevitably retain the championship now that Rangers have been demoted to the third division, but the competitive tension of the league has certainly been diminished. Participation in the Champions League would be a glamorous intrusion, as well as providing financial relief, but there are also past indiscretions to addressed.
Celtic lost to SC Braga in the Champions League qualifying rounds two years ago, in Lennon's first competitive match as the club's permanent manager. The Portuguese side did not have a rich European heritage, but they were accomplished enough to then defeat Seville, finish third in a group that contained Arsenal, Shakhtar Donetsk and Partizan Belgrade, drop into the Europa League and reach the final, which they lost to Porto. Celtic's European campaign ended with only their second tie, when they were knocked out of the Europa League qualifiers by Utrecht.
The same happened last season, when Sion won over two legs, only for the Swiss side to be thrown out of the Europa League for fielding ineligible players. Celtic grew in accomplishment with every tie they subsequently played in the group stages, but Europe remains a stage on which Lennon and his players will feel unfulfilled. Setbacks tend to nag at a manager, but Lennon wants to use them as a form of incentive.
"The fact we won the title will give them a sense of achievement and you also have to look at Braga, Utrecht and Sion as relevant games at this stage of the season," the Celtic manager said. "We haven't done as well as we could have done in those matches and, hopefully, the players will use that as extra motivation. We have better players [now] who know each other better through time. We have a bit more experience and we're not going into the games raw. However, it is always difficult at this stage of the season. It's our first competitive game and I have been wary of these matches for six or seven weeks."
There have been severe judgments in European competition so far, but the greatest danger is to be intimidated by them. Celtic embarked on a draining pre-season tour last year, that involved games in Australia, but the itinerary was less demanding this summer. Training in Germany was followed by friendlies against Ajax, Norwich and Internazionale, with the latter treated as a competitive game by Celtic ahead of tonight's first-leg.
Worries are always collected during these preparation stages, and Celtic registered only one win and three goals from the six friendly games they played. Lennon will be more concerned by the ankle injuries suffered by Kris Commons and Anthony Stokes. Both will be assessed this afternoon, and the former is considered more likely to be able to take part in the game. The pre-season schedule was drawn up with this tie in mind, and the intention was to counter the advantages held by any opponents whose season had already started.
"We've worked on the physical side and tried to do more football, maybe 18 more football sessions than a year ago," Lennon said. "You learn more in defeat and Ajax was a great marker for us, even though they were ahead of us in terms of pre-season, as they were ahead of us in all departments. We have to try and attain that level, not just with fitness and speed, but with the quality of football.
"The nucleus of the team know each other and know the Champions League is a huge incentive. For the sake of progression and the development and reputation of the players, European football is important. The reality is these games come so early and it's important we get it right quickly or it's gone just like that."
Celtic will attempt to be aggressive and reach a high tempo this evening and the expectation is that Helsinki will have to be physically overcome as well as outplayed. The Finnish champions defeated KR Reykjavik 9-1 over two legs in the last qualifying round and even when teams can be mismatched, such heavy scorelines tend to be freakish. Helsinki use an Astroturf pitch, which will hamper opponents who are not used to it, but Celtic have greater resources to can call upon.
[Reaching the group stages] is hugely important and significant for our own development, " Lennon said. "And mine as a coach as well. We have tried to look at the factors behind why it hasn't worked for us in previous years. We've tried to get all that right in preparation. Your best laid plans can go to waste on one night. We've worked really hard with the players, on and off the training ground. We have to trust the players now."
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