SCOTT BROWN is urging his Celtic team-mates to grab their first chance to book a place in the last 32 of the Europa League.

The Hoops captain knows just how anxious qualification for the knock-out stages can be if it is left to the last match.

Celtic will go through if they beat Astra Giurgiu tonight and Salzburg beat Dinamo Zagreb in the other Group D tie in Croatia.

Brown said: "All we can do is try our best to win our game, then see what's happened in the other match. Hopefully, we can secure the three points in Romania and Salzburg can also get a result.

"But if we don't get through tonight we won't panic. We'll still have another two games to go."

Brown needs no reminding of the agony and ecstasy involved in taking a qualification campaign to the last group match.

Twice in the last seven years Celtic had to go all the way to the final whistle of their sixth match before getting over the line in the Champions League.

They lost 1-0 to AC Milan in 2007 after they had travelled to Italy believing they needed a point to go through. But Benfica's victory over Shakhtar Donetsk saw the Hoops retain second-top spot, sparking scenes of celebration in their dressing room in the San Siro.

In 2012, Celtic had a chance to go through with a game to spare but lost 2-1 to Benfica in Lisbon. That set up a last-night clash with Spartak Moscow, which was won by a late Kris Commons penalty.

All of which has shown Brown that, for the sake of everyone's nerves, it is best to get the job done at the first time of asking.

The skipper said: "We are not going to put all our eggs in one basket.

"If we don't go through tonight we will then face Salzburg at home. Or we could even qualify when we go to Zagreb."

But he confessed: "If it's possible, we would definitely want to avoid that scenario."

Brown's experience, good and bad, of the qualification roller-coaster, will be invaluable in the closing stages of this group.

He needs no reminding of the agony and ecstasy involved in finally getting over the line.

Yet he is confident he and his team-mates can complete the job they have started so well.

He said: "It doesn't matter how we get through. Reaching the knockout stage has always been the target for us.

"If you had asked us at the start of the group if we would have taken seven points from our first three games and the chance to go through tonight, we would have bitten your hand off for that.

"We have not played our best, but we have got the results and that's all that matters."

Not even the fact the Hoops must start tonight without main strikers John Guidetti and Anthony Stokes can dampen Brown's belief they can hit the 10-point mark.

"We have Stefan Scepovic and Leigh Griffiths who can come in," he insisted. "But it's not just them who can score.

"Stefan Johansen is just one of the players who have been getting goals, including the winner against Astra last time.

"We also have a few players coming back from injury and that has got to help us."