Champions League
2025-08-20 - Celtic vs Kairat Almaty
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: UEFA Champions League Play Off Round First Leg
Wednesday 20th August 2025 - Kick Off 8pm
Preview
Scottish Football might be dominated by Celtic and Rangers, but successes of the clubs that have taken part in European Football has meant the Champions have not had to Qualify for the Group Stage of the Champions League in the last couple of years. That has mainly benefited Celtic, who had their best run in the competition since 2012/13 when reaching the Knock Out Play Off Round last year before narrowly losing to Bayern Munich.
Expectations have thus been raised and Celtic will be looking to win their first Qualifying tie in the Champions League since 2020 when taking part in this Play Off Round tie over the next week.
Fans would have been encouraged by the draw when paired with the winner of the Slovan Bratislava-Kairat Almaty Third Qualifying Round tie, but the management and players will know that they cannot overlook the opponent.
It is Kairat Almaty who have come through thanks to a Penalty Shoot Out win over the Slovakian Champions, although the former have lost the last 2 away ties played in the run to the Play Off Round. They were beaten 1-0 in the Second Leg in Bratislava and previously Kairat Almaty had lost 2-0 at KuPS before overcoming them with a big win at home in the Second Leg.
Kairat Almaty have surprisingly reached the Play Off Round having begun the adventure in the First Qualifying Round and home form has been key. They did not take part in any UEFA competition last season, but the lack of experience at this level has not held them back and the key for the Kazakh Champions is to return home with everything to play for.
With that in mind, Kairat Almaty may set up defensively in Glasgow and try and frustrate Celtic.
Brendan Rodgers will be proud of the fact that his team have lost just 2 of the 8 home Champions League games played in the last couple of seasons. That will give the manager confidence that his team have the experience and patience to break down this opponent, while the 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League Group Stage last year will certainly give the squad some kind of benchmark to the level of opponent they are facing in this tie.
It can create pressure, but Celtic have opened the season looking pretty sharp, especially in the final third, and the fans will be making plenty of noise to try and unsettle Kairat Almaty and play on their inexperiences.
Kairat Almaty have lost 5 of their last 7 away games played under the UEFA banner and they were second best in the defeat in Bratislava. They were beaten this past weekend domestically, perhaps with one eye on this tie, while Kairat Almaty have won 1 of their last 4 away games in all competitions ahead of this long trip to Glasgow.
This is the first time these two clubs are facing one another in a competitive fixture.
Prediction
They look the team to beat in Scotland, but Celtic fans will feel it is a massive setback for the club if they are not able to return to the Champions League Group Stage.
The draw could not have worked out much better, but Brendan Rodgers and his team have to be focused and they will not only be looking to win this First Leg, but perhaps push the tie out of reach for Kairat Almaty before the game in Kazakhstan.
It is possible for Celtic, but they have to be patient and not rush things.
Kairat Almaty will have picked up confidence from winning three ties in the Champions League for the first time and the club are already guaranteed a big Group Stage campaign. They have never played in either the Champions League or Europa League Group Stage so it is an achievement that has to be respected, while Kairat Almaty may feel all of the pressure and expectation is on the Celtic shoulders.
They will want to exploit any nerves, but containing Celtic here may be tough and the home team do have the firepower to at least match the margin of victory KuPS had against the Kazakh Champions.
If they can score early, Celtic may even do more than that and there is every chance the Second Leg could end up being nothing more than a formality next week.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Celtic 3-0 Kairat Almaty
