Celtic's route to victory versus Slovan Bratislava in Europe

The match at Celtic Park is the first of eight games in the revamped competition, with Brendan Rodgers’ side looking to get off to a winning start in their third successive appearance in the Champions League proper.  Standing in their way are competition debutants Slovan, champions of Slovakia for the last six seasons. 

This analysis will take a closer look at Celtic’s first Champions League opponents of the season, highlighting a few areas where Celtic could exploit their opponents to pick up an opening night victory. 

Team profile

Slovan came through all four qualifying rounds to reach the new league phase of the Champions League. The first Slovak side to feature in the competition proper in 14 seasons, Slovan saw off FK Struga, NK Celje and APOEL Nicosia before a narrow 4-3 aggregate win over Danish side Midtjylland in the play-off stage. 

Despite their heavy qualifying schedule, they have still won five of their first six league games in the Slovakian league with a 5-0 reverse at home against Zilina after the second leg of the play-off with Midtjylland the only blemish in their league record to date. They came from behind to win 2-1 at DAC 1904 on Saturday to return to the top of the table. 

In terms of recent European pedigree, the team from the Slovakian capital have played in the group stages of the Conference League in the last three seasons. They won their group in 2022/23 before being knocked out in the round of 16 by Basel. A second-place finish in last season’s competition, which included a notable draw against French side Lille, earned them a place in the knockout stages again. However, they were comprehensively beaten 5-1 over two leagues by Austrian side Strum Graz. 

They are managed by former national side coach Vladimir Weiss, who is now in his second spell in charge. His son, also Vladimir Weiss, had a loan spell with Rangers in 2010/11 and is part of Slovan’s current squad. 

Starting XI

Slovan lined up in their usual 4-2-3-1 set-up for their recent league match away at DAC. This was the formation they used in both ties against Midtjylland, but they deployed a back three on occasion in the away tie against Struga. They also reverted to a 5-4-1 midgame away to APOEL. 

If they are to stick to their 4-2-3-1, David Sterlec is likely to lead the line for Slovan at Celtic Park. Weiss, on his return to Scotland, will be the favourite to play off the left, with Croatian Marko Tolic being the choice at ten. Armenian winger Tigran Barseghyan, who has six goals in six league appearances this season, will play off the right. Weiss Snr also has the option of calling on former Zenit Saint Petersburg forward Robert Mak. The 81-times capped Slovakian attacker has returned to his homeland this summer after a spell in Australia with Sydney FC. 

Ukrainian Danylo Ignatenko and Julis Szoke will be the primary candidates to take the two deeper-lying midfield roles, but 37-year-old Juraj Kucka could also offer an experienced option in there for the Slovaks. 

Their backline seems pretty settled. Panama international Cesar Blackman will likely start at right-back, with Guram Kashia and Kenan Bajric in the middle. Austrian Kevin Wimmer, formerly of Spurs and Stoke City, has been the preferred option at left-back and will probably line up there once more. Dominik Takac, a summer signing from Spartak Trnava, should start between the sticks.  

Even if Weiss doesn’t pitch some of his most experienced players, it is still likely to be an older starting eleven that Celtic will come up against with Slovan’s average starting eleven age again against Midtjylland in both legs over 30. 

Build-up

Although Slovan tend to be dominant domestically, they are not the most ‘ball-dominant’. Despite winning the league by 15 points, they were second for ball possession in last year’s Slovakian top flight with 55 per cent of the ball. 

Unsurprisingly, given this, as they have come up against higher-level opposition in their Champions League qualifiers, they tended to have less possession. At home, they have been more even, but on the road, even in their second-round qualifier at Celjie, they have had less possession. Away at Midtjylland, their possession was 38.64 per cent to the home side’s 61.36 per cent.

This is partially due to a preference for going longer when building up from the back. Even when they do play shorter, such as the below example, which shows their set-up when building play, they only tend to play one or two before going long. 

In these situations, right-back Blackman will often take a position high with the more defensive Wimmer tucked in on the opposite side. The two deepest midfielders will drop but often just bounce the ball back before, if they cannot get the ball into the feet of Blackman out wide, they go long again. Freeing Blackman higher up the pitch is one of Slovan’s objectives, with the right-back one of their biggest creative threats (his 0.81 xA in the last five games is the most in the Slovan squad).   

Celtic will need to be prepared for a competitive midfield battle when battling for second balls more than anything else with Slovan boasting some combative options in the middle of the park. However, should Slovan try to play from the back, even for one or two passes before going long, there could be joy. 

The backline, including the goalkeeper, looks shaky when put under pressure. Such as the below example when they tried to play short in the opening exchanges away at Midtjylland. 

Here, after working the ball out wide left and then back in, the goalkeeper plays an under-hit pass that forces the defender to rush a clearance into the middle of the pitch. This ended up presenting Midtjylland with a clear strike at goal, which was deflected wide.

Given the pressing abilities of Celtic’s probable front three (Kyogo, Daizen Maeda and Nicolas Kuhn), should they opt for a similar approach at any point in the game at Parkhead, Celtic will have plenty of players who could severely exploit this. 

Final third threat

As mentioned, Blackman is one of Slovan’s biggest creative third threats. As seen earlier, he tends to take up high positions, such as the below example.

Here, after a turnover in the middle of the pitch, Slovan are quick to get on the attack. Blackman, almost in the front line, is played in and gets a shot on target at the near post. Not the best choice on this occasion, with options in the middle, Celtic will still need to keep tabs on the Panama international, who is a powerful runner. 

That right side is certainly Slovan’s stronger side, with Barseghyan stationed there too. Although not super quick, he does have a bit of pace, coupled with excellent close control and good upper-body strength, he could pose a particular threat on the break.

Technically very astute, the Amenian has a powerful shot too, as he demonstrated to great effect to book Slovan’s place in the competition against Midtjylland. 

That technical ability extends to dead-ball situations with Barseghyan netting directly from a free-kick against DAC at the weekend. Ensuring they don’t give away fouls in and around the box will be something Celtic will also need to be mindful of.

Defending style of play 

So, what Celtic can we expect from Slovan when they don’t have the ball? Predictably, for a side that lines up 4-2-3-1, Slovan tend to drop into a 4-4-1-1 shape without the ball. With wide forwards tucking in with the deepest midfielders to form a bank of four in front of the back four, the number 10 will drop in to offer more protection in the middle. 

As mentioned, that ten role will likely be taken up by Tolic, with the Croatian no doubt tasked with getting as close as he can to Callum McGregor in an attempt to stop the Celtic captain from dictating play.

Although not a total low block, Slovan will likely not be far off that on Wednesday night at Celtic Park. They will look to get into shape and remain compact. They are fairly disciplined and keep good distances between the lines. As the below radar, which covers their Conference League games from last season, Slovan are likely to sit off too.

A small sample of just eight games, but they posted one of the highest passes allowed per defensive action (14.59 per 90), more than Aberdeen allowed in their matches in the competition. It therefore seems highly unlikely they will press Celtic high up the pitch.

Set-piece weakness

The radar also points to another way in which Celtic could get joy against their Slovakian opponents. Again, it was a smallish sample, of course, but they conceded an average set piece xG of 0.47 per 90, the highest of any team in Europe’s third competition last season.

That issue seems to have spilt into this season with DAC’s goal on Saturday in their loss to Slovan coming from a free-kick. 

Slovan allowed a DAC player the freedom of the back of the box from a deep free-kick. The DAC player was then afforded time to bring the ball down in the box before firing the ball into the six-yard, the ball deflecting into the net off a Slovan defender. 

Conclusion 

Despite being billed as the weakest side in the new-look league format by many, Slovan Bratislava still present a challenge for Celtic. Compact and reasonably well structured out of possession, they have several players with experience at higher levels than Slovakian football. Individual players, like Barseghyan and Blackman on the right side, will need close attention in particular. 

Slovan’s overall lack of ball dominance in away games will more than likely allow Rodgers’ side to control large portions of the match though while their struggles when pressed high could give Celtic’s front three ample opportunities to disrupt play and create chances. The Slovakian’s set-piece defending remains a glaring weakness too, something Celtic will be eager to capitalise on. 

This kind of challenge is perhaps unusual for Celtic in Europe’s top club competition, and being heavy favourites brings its own pressures. However, a composed and aggressive approach should allow them to exploit Slovan’s defensive frailties, creating the opportunities needed to secure an important win that would get their Champions League campaign up and running.