IN the end it was simple enough for Celtic whose win over FC Stjarnan of Iceland takes them into the next round of qualifiers and, tantalisingly, four games away from the Champions League group stage.

For the best part of half an hour, the unthinkable was a possibility.

However, Ronny Deila's team were patient, professional and the scoreline did not flatter them.

Next up is Qarabag of Azerbaijan, who are decent, and there must be some improvement from Celtic especially in front of goal next Wednesday when it comes to the first leg in Glasgow.

Deila’s team, in terms of possession and chances created, should have won this tie by 10 clear goals.

As it was, an early goal from the home side and Celtic’s uncertainty in the opening stages caused some real anxiety in the first half before the equaliser came before the break and everyone could calm down.

The Samsungvollur Stadium consisted of one stand, a swimming pool which was busy with bathers seemingly unaware that a Champions League match was taking place next door, and a couple of five-a-side pitches.

Celtic have played just about everywhere over the years, but this venue was smaller than some junior grounds back home.

The plastic pitch wasn’t up to much either; little black pellets jumped up all the time and the bounce of the ball could not be trusted.

However, the reality for Celtic these days is that any European campaign begins early and small – and it’s rarely simple.

Just like last week, Deila surprised many by starting with Nadir Ciftci instead of Leigh Griffiths.

Less of a shock was Emilio Izaguirre being dropped, with Charlie Mulgrew moving over to left-back.

And then with just over six minutes of the match gone the travelling support got another shock – and a big one at that.

With their first attack, Stjarnan’s Jeppe Hansen ran on to a ball near the left touchline. He nutmegged Virgil van Dijk, the ball fell to Olafur Karl Finsen who easily evaded a soft challenge from Nir Bitton and then showed good composure to place his shot past Craig Gordon.

It was difficult to work out who was more stunned, the home support or those who had travelled from Scotland.

On the field, Celtic looked shaken and found creativity a problem.

They thought they had scored an equaliser on 22 minutes when a clever free-kick from Mulgrew picked out Stefan Johansen on the edge of the box whose shot was blocked by Stjarnan keeper Gunnar Nielsen before Dedryck Boyata put the ball over the line. The celebrations, however, were halted by an assistant’s flag.

Half an hour came and went and the pattern of the game had been Celtic passing the ball square a lot, not finding their man with a pass and Stjarnan sitting in looking to break on the counter-attack.

Then Celtic scored and everyone took a mighty deep breath of sheer relief.

It was simple enough, Johansen sent in a good in-swinging corner and Bitton timed his run and jump perfectly to head home from a few yards.

And that was that. The goal ensured the home side would need to score three times to put Celtic on ice.

It was almost 2-1 on 36 minutes when Stuart Armstrong spun inside the box and got off a shot which flashed across the goal.

Bitton went even closer with a well-struck effort from 20 yards five minutes before the break which Nielsen held.

And then four minutes into the second-half, Mulgrew made the remainder of the match redundant.

Gary Mackay-Steven showed some neat footwork to work the ball to Scott Brown on the edge of the box.

He passed to Mulgrew who had charged down the left and he sent a superb shot along the artificial surface and into the bottom corner.

Ciftci got a glimpse of goal on 53 minutes when he beat the Stjarnan offside trap, such as it was, but he sent his shot into the trees behind the goal.

Efe Ambrose replaced Mikael Lustig, with the Swede looking far from fit. Then Griffiths was sent on in another change of personnel for the last half-hour as Stuart Armstrong made way.

The pattern, though, remained the same. Celtic had almost all of the ball and their opponents ran about a lot but rarely made any headway.

Griffiths almost scored with his second touch when his shot with the outside of his left foot missed the post by inches.

Ciftci had another crack on 64 minutes. Let’s be kind and say the surface did not help with the bobble of the ball, which the Turk sent past the goal by miles.

Stjarnan, whose fans were small in number but hugely encouraging, had a half-chance of their own on 67 minutes when defender Brynjar Gudjonsson put his header wide from 15 yards.

Celtic had a second goal chopped off when Mulgrew’s free-kick was prodded home by Bitton, who was marginally offside.

Almost immediately, Stjarnan broke with purpose. Finsen cut inside Ambrose, got the ball onto his right but his shot was well saved by Gordon.

A third was denied to Celtic with 15 minutes to go when great play by Mackay-Steven and Bitton led to the latter being put through on goal, only for the winger to be denied by Nielsen.

However, Griffiths did get a third goal when Mackay-Steven broke into the box and unselfishly squared a pass to the striker.

And in injury-time, Johansen produced a fine finish after being picked out by the excellent Mulgrew to make it an awesome foursome and ensure that the resistance of the Icemen was well and truly broken.