THE friendly/deadly serious/friendly/deadly serious mix of matches which make up the start to Celtic's campaign can be a bit perplexing for supporters.

Which Hoops side are they going to see? What approach will be on show? Most importantly, what will it tell them about what the season promises?

On Saturday, it was back to the shadow team in warm-up mode when Borussia Munchengladbach trotted out at Parkhead and laid claim to the ball for the majority of the 90 minutes played in the sweltering heat to run out 2-1 winners.

On Wednesday, the switch is flicked again for ultra-competitive action when Neil Lennon will field his strongest side against Elfsborg in the first leg of their Champions League third qualifying round tie.

The reassuring aspect for the Parkhead boss is that, while not all their fans can cope with the constant alternating between competitive and non-competitive games – this will continue right through to August 10 when they face Liverpool in Dublin – his players do know when they must get their serious gameheads on.

They proved this in the two matches against Cliftonville in the previous qualifying round.

And, when Lennon sits them down over the next two days to avail them of the up-to-date information he gleaned from watching Elfsborg draw 1-1 with Atvidabergs on Saturday – Mo Bangura missed a penalty as the Swedish champions lost more ground in their quest to retain their crown – they will be reminded they have to be 'on' from the first whistle again come Wednesday.

The fine balance between getting his players up to maximum match sharpness and avoiding exposure to any unnecessary and untimely injury was uppermost in the minds of the Celtic management team at the weekend ahead of this week.

With Victor Wanyama and Gary Hooper sold, new Bhoy Virgil van Dijk sidelined for another couple of weeks with a broken foot bone, and Charlie Mulgrew, Adam Matthews and Joe Ledley only returning to action in the second half against Borussia after being laid off with injury, Lennon does not yet have the luxury of extensive cover for all positions.

He continues to work on that, and exercising the right to add one more name to the squad for Wednesday's tie is still his intention, difficult though this is proving to be.

But, ostensibly, it is the men who performed such a professional job against Cliftonville who will be given the mandate to nullify the threat Elfsborg represent to their aspirations of booking a place in next month's play-off round for a spot in the group stages of the Champions league.

Run-outs like the one against Borussia are just a means to this end.

And, while losing any match – especially in front of your own fans – is never ideal, seeing Anthony Stokes score to restore some of the confidence lost when he spurned easier chances in the previous match against Cliftonville, and allowing Scott Brown, Kris Commons and Efe Ambrose to get another 45 minutes under their belts to ease them towards full match fitness, put some big ticks into the positives column.

With Mulgrew, Ledley and Matthews all appearing in the second half, and reporting no reaction to their returns from their respective injuries, Lennon was content when coach Garry Parker – in charge for the day while the manager and Johan Mjallby took in Elfsborg's game – gave his report.

Parker said: "To be honest with you, with the side we had out against Borussia, I wasn't expecting to win. Anything we did would have been a bonus because Borussia are a very good side.

"The result was not important. It was all about the fitness because Wednesday night is what is important. But the lads kept going and did better the longer the game went on."

The lapse of concentration which allowed Borussia to regain possession and score their opening goal – they could have had a few more had their finishing been more clinical – reminded everyone it takes as much effort to get focus up to full sharpness as it does to get lungs and legs working at their maximum.

But there were a number of Celtic's younger players included in the side, and every experience – good and bad – is helpful in their learning curve.

Some, like Darnell Fisher, continue to impress and have pushed themselves to the threshold of the side.

But in these very important embryonic stages of the season, when a Champions League spot is on the line, it is to the tried and trusted that Lennon will turn.

The experience gained in the qualification programmes of the past few seasons will be heavily leant upon, along with key individuals like skipper Brown.

So, the sight of him twice going down heavily inside a minute just before half-time after heavy challenges was not what Parker wanted to see and caused a collective intake of breath around the stadium.

When he did not re-appear after the break, the worry lines grew even deeper on many foreheads.

But Parker revealed it was always the plan to take the captain out of the firing line, and that Brown – who missed the first few games of pre-season as he recovered from the groin problem picked up in May's Scottish Cup final – was only involved in the first place because he asked for the chance to top up his match fitness.

"Scott wanted to play 45 minutes on Saturday, and so did Kris Commons," said the coach. "It was a good workout for them. Even though Kris didn't really get on the ball a lot, because he was chasing it most of the time, he was still working.

"We did get a bit worried when Scott went down after a couple of tackles, but he has come through it okay and is fine.

"You need to get the sharpness into the players. Those coming back from injury, you need to get them up to scratch. The good thing is we didn't pick up any more injuries, so we can now look forward to Wednesday's very important game."