Times Talker: How will tonight's game between Celtic and Ajax in the Europa League go?

Difficult, but can be done, says Alison McConnell

THERE is optimism, there is blind faith and then there is simply being a little slow of thought.

All evidence tonight points to a 90 minutes in which Celtic fans might require all ten fingers to cover their eyes.

Scott Brown being out has made what was a difficult task all the tougher. Kris Commons being stuck on the sidelines is another set-back, particularly when consideration is given to the fact that two mainstays of Ronny Deila's midfield will also be confined to the stand with Nir Bitton and Stefan Johansen suspended.

In some respects it can be in time of extreme adversity that the odds are defied but it will be difficult game against Ajax tonight. Celtic at their strongest have stuttered in this competition so without key players it is difficult to see how they eek a result out.

And yet, you would never quite write Celtic off at home.

It could be that if Deila's men come out and start the game well with a level of aggression and energy that has sometimes being posted missing that they will rouse the fans and give a positive vibe to the beat within the stadium. That in itself can sometimes translate then to events on the pitch but if Celtic are to come out of this with the win that they so badly need tonight it will be regarded as a huge triumph.

It is a massive test for Deila's side and it will be interesting to see if the change of personnel results in a change of shape.

Too tough, says Neil Cameron

I FEAR the worst for Celtic this evening.

No Scott Brown, no Kris Commons, no Stefan Johansen, no Nir Bitton. That’s three of the team’s best players there – I’m not counting the out of form Johansen – so this is a hell of a task.

You have to feel for Ronny Deila who will know that if his side lose and go out of Europe, there will be more questions asked about him ahead of a tricky trip to Inverness on Saturday.

But his team should not have only two points from four games. They should have won in Amsterdam and threw away three points at home to Fenerbahce. Even if those two horror shows against Molde had taken place, they would have had six points and second place would more or less been theirs.

Who fault is that? Everybody’s.

There is an awful lot riding on this game and while the Dutch are no great shakes, they are probably better than Celtic and certainly hold an advantage now their opponents are so many men down.

Brown is out for three months and you can’t help wonder if he should have played so much earlier in the season when he was clearly struggling. He’s a huge miss.

It’s time the likes of Stuart Armstrong, Gary Mackay-Steven, Scott Allan and Nadir Ciftci came to the party this season. This is what life at Celtic is about. They need to show they belong at the club.