ANOTHER summer ... another European campaign kicking off in Iceland for Celtic.

Last year the Parkhead club started their Champions League qualification bid against KR Reykjavik, but this time it will be the surprise package of Stjarnan they will have to overcome to progress this time round.

It could have been easier for Celtic. Of course, they are the favourites and would be very disappointed if they don’t beat the Icelandic side handsomely.

But one complicating factor is that they are playing a team mid-season. We have seen a number of Scottish clubs, including Motherwell against Stjarnan last year, who have had difficulty playing sides who are already up and running.

They may not be at the peak of their powers, but it’s like playing a game here in October or November.

The team who hail from the outskirts of Reykjavik are a small club in a small football country. They only really came to prominence in the last two or three years.

They were a novelty and were known for their wild celebrations on YouTube. However, they have been trying to be taken more seriously.

They have a very vocal fan group and singing section, and they certainly had plenty to shout about last season with their European run and first league title. They also became the first Icelandic outfit to win three Euro rounds in a row.

This season they are not having quite as good a time of it. Currently sixth in the Urvalsdeild after nine games, they appear to be having a bit of a difficult time adjusting to the expectation of being the best team in the country.

I think Celtic will be ready for it.

The plus point is that it’s not a trip into the unknown. They were in Iceland last season, and it means most of Ronny Deila’s players will be familiar with the level and style of opposition.

They have a bright young manager in Rúnar Páll Sigmundsson, who is a Jurgen Klopp dead ringer!

It’s still a relatively new thing for them to be playing in Europe and still a novelty for them. It’s a far cry from the minnows who were promoted in 2008.

Despite all of the recent success they have enjoyed, though, Celtic should still be strong enough to go through. It would be a massive disappointment and surprise, even in Iceland, if that wasn’t the case.

I believe it is a good thing that the first leg is at Parkhead. Celtic have also been clever and included the game in season ticket packages to attract a big crowd. By the time the second leg comes round, it would be of immense benefit to already have got a win under their belts.

Deila will want to kill the tie stone dead, and that’s not an unreasonable goal.

That’s no disrespect to Stjarnan. What they did last year was remarkable before being outgunned by Inter, which is what you’d expect. And you’d expect them to do something similar.

Ronny being the worldly guy he is will already know something about Stjarnan.

You can see a lot of similarities to their rise in Iceland to what he did with Stromsgodset in Norway.

They are unfashionable, and have beaten the odds to get where they are. Ronny will relate to that. On the other hand, the boot is on the other foot for him now.

Last summer’s failed bid to get into the Champions League maybe shocked Celtic a bit. They had been in the tournament two years running and had managed to beat Barcelona. I think there was an expectation level that this is what Celtic do now.

It was a bit of a rude awakening and really wasn’t a huge surprise. Not because of Ronny, but it’s difficult to come in at fairly short notice and go straight into a European campaign. It’s laced with difficulties which also troubled Neil Lennon and Gordon Strachan.

Players now know Ronny and his style of play. If ties were six months later it would have been very different, and I don’t expect Stjarnan to give them any sort of problems when they meet next month.