Derek Rae: A Game needed for Celtic in Ajax Europa League opener in Amsterdam

Celtic fans of course wanted to face Real Madrid and Paris St Germain in the Champions League, rather than Ajax and Fenerbahce for starters in the Europa. But don't for a minute, think the task facing the Scottish champions in Group A is going to be straightforward.

In fact, you can argue that the Dutch and Turkish standard bearers in the Hoops' section might actually be more powerful than many sides who have made it to Europe's premier club competition.

We'll leave the in-depth analysis of Fenerbahce for another day although let's just say there is a lot more to them than just the formidable former Manchester United combo of Robin van Persie and Nani on the flanks.

Ajax represent the first hurdle Celtic must overcome and you can identify similarities here. Big clubs both, former European club champions, who dwarf the majority of their domestic competitors when it comes to financial resources. Yet they are unable to compete with teams from the top five European leagues. That's just a financial fact of life nowadays.

Neither the Amsterdam side or the Glasgow outfit can afford to view the Europa League than anything other than important. It's difficult to make the argument that the test on the home front is limited, so let's not bother too much about this continental business.

Where Celtic and Ajax models diverge is in the area of development and player recruitment. The latter, for much of their existence, have been the poster club for identifying young players, immersing them in the ways of the club and fielding the best of them in the first team regularly. It's what makes the Amsterdam club special to so many people around the world.

A quick glance at the likely team for Wednesday tells you the majority of the starters will fall in the 18-21 age group. In fact Serbian midfield man Nemanja Gudelj may be the old man of the outfield players at 23.

Celtic had genuine difficulty dealing with Malmö's Markus Rosenberg in the Champions League playoff round and they must be prepared for another big test from a man all Scottish football fans are going to become very familiar with in the next few weeks.

Polish forward Arkadiusz Milik, now signed permanently, after a successful loan spell from Leverkusen last term, is a handful. He scored for Poland in their famous 2-0 win over Germany last year, as well as in the 2-2 draw with Scotland. Ajax, who rarely deviate from the 4-3-3 that's in their DNA, rely on width and with that in mind, Anwar El Ghazi, a young Dutchman of Moroccan descent, must be watched closely. El Ghazi already has 6 goals to his name this season from only 4 league games.

But there are weaknesses too. Ajax were much criticised in the Netherlands for throwing away a gilt-edged opportunity to overcome Rapid Vienna in the Champions League third qualifying round, conceding 5 goals over the 2 matches. They only just pulled through in the Europa League play-off round against Jablonec.

Goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen had a shocker recently with the Dutch national team. Joel Veltman, who made his European debut against Celtic in the Champions League two years ago has not kicked on in the manner many predicted, while Jairo Riedewald although very promising at 18, is still establishing himself.

So there should be scoring opportunities for Celtic at the Amsterdam Arena on Thursday night. Just consult Rapid Vienna. But Ajax, who have a flawless record in the Dutch Eredivisie so far, usually have a few goals in them, too.

An interesting evening awaits at one of Europe's great football venues. Celtic must bring their 'A game.'

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