It will be difficult for Celtic to shake the feelings of disappointment that lingered after the concession of a late goal to Malmo — but I still think that Ronny Deila’s men will get the result they need against Malmo on Tuesday night.

The lateness of the goal and the manner in which it changed the complexion of the tie left a pervading feeling of negativity at the end of what was a
dramatic evening at Parkhead.

But I do think you have to remember that Celtic hold a lead and they are capable of getting a result in Sweden.

Celtic can score in Malmo. I also think that Malmo will score too, but I do think Celtic have it within them to get into the Champions League group stages.

In that respect, I think that Leigh Griffiths has to keep his starting position for the second leg.

I think that Nadir Ciftci might come into things,
especially in away games, if Celtic progress into the group stages. But at this point in time it is Griffiths who is the form player.

While Ciftci has had to serve out his domestic ban, Griffiths has been able to hone his match sharpness and I thought he took his goals well on Wednesday night.

His second goal in particular, although poorly defended, was a fantastic finish and I thought overall he led the line very well.

His movement was good and I think he has to be in from the start over in Sweden next week.

Similarly, I thought we saw the James Forrest of old again on Wednesday night.

I thought he was aggressive and determined and he had a really impressive game.

If he can sustain that level of performance then can be a
significant asset to Celtic.

But the performance that will need to come from the Parkhead side will be similar to the one that they produced when they headed over to play Qarabag in the previous round.

That was a controlled
performance, very disciplined — and Celtic could have sneaked a couple of goals late on in that game.

While I think that Malmo have more of a goal threat than Qarabag, I actually think that the game against the Azerbaijan side was trickier than this one.

There is no doubt that the tie is in the balance and it is very delicately poised — but the one thing that Celtic cannot afford to do is to let Malmo start the game the way Celtic did at Parkhead the other night.

They cannot afford to give Malmo an early initiative.

The way Celtic kicked the tie off reminded me of an old fashioned European night with the way they came charging out of the blocks.

They ran right over the top of Malmo and really should have been 3-0 up before the game had hit the 20-minute mark.

But the one thing I feel is that the nervousness of the crowd can sometimes creep through to the players.

I noticed it during the home game against Qarabag and I felt it again on Wednesday night. There are times when you sense the anxiety of the crowd and I do wonder what effect that has on the players.

There have been errors at the back in recent games against the likes of Kilmarnock and Inverness, and when there are self-inflicted errors like that they do create that kind of nervousness.

Away from home it is easier maybe to shut off from that and, of course, they will have to be a bit deeper in Malmo than they were in Glasgow.

But I don’t think they were guilty of going gung-ho at it. I think maybe the midfield could have done a bit more to protect the back four, but I actually felt that defensively they had been steady enough.

I did wonder about Malmo boss Åge Hareide’s comments about Celtic not having the legs to see games out.

I don’t think there is any question over the fitness of the players, but I do wonder about the mental aspect of conceding late goals.

Hareide, I would suspect, is trying to stir things up a little before the return leg.

But Celtic have shown already in this Champions league qualification campaign that they are capable of producing strong, defensive displays.

They will need that — as well as a goal — if they are to get themselves into the group
stages of the competition on Tuesday night.

Mikael Lustig’s injury KO leaves celtic manager Ronny deila with a defensive dilemma for Malmo return

The injury to Lustig is a massive blow to Celtic given just how important a player he is.

He is an intelligent and reliable right-back and going into the second leg without him is a real headache.

He has been very unfortunate with injury problems and while we await news on the severity of this most recent problem, it does look as though he will not make the second leg on Tuesday night.

Glasgow Times:

It gives Deila the choice of going with the relative experience of Efe Ambrose – though he can also make individual mistakes – or whether to go with the relative inexperience of Saidy Janko.

There may be a clue in who he is going to play with the team that heads out this afternoon in the lunchtime kick-off at Tannadice.

If it is Janko that is given the starting jersey, then I would suspect that he may well retain it for the game against Malmo.

The game this afternoon is a chance to prepare for that second leg and Celtic will look to get themselves into the right frame of mind ahead of the journey to Sweden.

New Bhoy Scott Allan has the talent but he faces a fight to break into Celtic first team

The addition of Scott Allan from Hibs to the Celtic squad is an interesting one, but I think the lad faces a fight to get in the team.

Celtic have an abundance of midfield players and while Allan fits the mould of being young with a lot of potential to fulfil, he will find that he has to work hard to get himself into the team.

Glasgow Times:

The fact he was courted by Rangers and was public about being a boyhood Rangers fan is meaningless for me.

He got a great reception from the Celtic support when he was unveiled at the weekend and he is not the first nor last player to find himself in this position.

Having played with Danny McGrain and Kenny Dalglish, who both grew up supporting the Ibrox side, I know full well how little that means once you come to the club.

Allan is a creative player who likes to make things happen and that is an asset that is always highly sought after.

Right now, Celtic are well covered in the midfield area, but he is one who can be developed over the years.

And I also think the move east can benefit Liam Henderson. I have been impressed by the 19-year-old and this is a chance for him to go out on loan and get regular games under his belt.

He has something to offer and playing in a very competitive league in front of a demanding home support can certainly bring his game on over the season.

Your question for Davie Hay

CHRIS MALONE from Glasgow asked Davie: What was the most memorable away European game you were involved in?

As a player, it would always have to be the game at Elland Road where we beat Leeds United 1-0 in the first leg of the European Cup semi-final.

When I was manager of Celtic, we beat Aarhus 4-1 over in Denmark in the Uefa Cup. We had lead only 1-0 from the first leg in Glasgow.