Celtic will have “too much” for Vorskla Poltava in the second-leg of their second round Champions League qualifying match, says former Scotland captain Gemma Fay, as the SWPL champions eye becoming the first Scottish team to qualify for the group stage.
Elena Sadiku’s side took a significant step towards achieving the feat in Sunday’s first leg against the Ukrainian champions, where they were 1-0 winners.
Celtic host again on Thursday evening in Airdrie, with kick-off 19:15 BST live on BBC Alba, in the knowledge a clean sheet will send them among Europe’s elite.
The Glasgow side defeated Finnish outfit KuPS and Lithuanian side Gintra in the first round of qualifying, after entering the champions path following last season’s dramatic title win.
Sadiku’s team clinched their first SWPL title with a 90th-minute winner against Hibernian, a success driven by the heartache they endured the previous term.
Under Fran Alonso, they were seconds away from celebrating before news across the city of Glasgow City’s triumph reached them.
Then, this time last season, they were knocked out of the Champions League in a penalty shootout against Valerenga.
But it is such heartache which former Scotland captain Gemma Fay believes will stand them in good stead for Thursday’s crucial second leg.
“They’ve lost with the last kick of the game, they’ve lost on a penalty shootout, they’ve been in these moments and had that experience,” Fay said on the Behind the Goals podcast.
“I think they’ve got enough players who understand what pressure is and how to achieve under it.
“I think this is a winnable tie, but I think there’s some caution needed out there,” she added.
Winnable it is, particularly given Celtic’s strength in depth.
For instance, Saoirse Noonan, who netted a hat-trick against KuPS and again last week against Montrose, remained on the bench in the first leg.
“I think they have opportunities to bring players on that can change a game to either shore it up or to chase it if they need to, so I just think they’ve probably got a bit too much.”