Celtic’s hopes of reaching the Europa League round of 16 are in serious jeopardy after a crushing 4-1 first-leg defeat to Stuttgart in Glasgow.
The Scottish side endured a night to forget, with veteran goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel at the centre of several costly mistakes as the Bundesliga outfit seized control of the play-off tie.
Celtic had scraped into the knockout phase thanks to a dramatic 4-2 win over Utrecht on the final matchday of the league phase, but their European journey now hangs in the balance following a shaky display at home.
The visitors struck first in the 15th minute after a poor clearance from Schmeichel gifted them possession in a dangerous area.
Deniz Undav’s sublime backheel volley set up Bilal El Khannouss, who calmly fired past the goalkeeper to open the scoring.
Celtic responded quickly. Six minutes later, Atakan Karazor attempted a risky pass while facing his own goal, and the ball ricocheted kindly into the path of Benjamin Nygren, who rounded Alexander Nübel before slotting into an empty net.
Parity did not last long. El Khannouss restored Stuttgart’s advantage in the 28th minute, reacting fastest to nod home a deflected cross at the near post for his second of the night.
Matters deteriorated further for the hosts early in the second half. Jamie Leweling unleashed a long-range effort that slipped through Schmeichel’s grasp and into the net, prompting audible frustration from the home crowd.
Although Ermedin Demirovic had a goal ruled out for offside, Stuttgart would not be denied a fourth. Substitute Tiago Tomás capped an emphatic display in stoppage time, cleverly lifting the ball over Schmeichel to give his side a commanding three-goal cushion ahead of the return leg in Germany.
The fixture brought back fond memories for Martin O’Neill, who guided Celtic past Stuttgart on their way to the 2002-03 UEFA Cup final. However, this time his side were outclassed.
El Khannouss, aged 21 years and 285 days, became Stuttgart’s youngest player to score twice in a European match since Mario Gomez achieved the feat in the 2005 UEFA Cup.
Undav also continued his outstanding campaign, reaching 16 goals and 11 assists across all competitions, a rare double-digit milestone matched by only a handful of players in Europe’s top five leagues this season.
Despite generating 1.79 expected goals, Celtic failed to capitalise on their opportunities, with Julian Araujo missing a late chance on the stretch. Stuttgart, by contrast, were clinical, converting four times from 2.08 xG to leave the tie firmly in their grasp.
