Scottish Express
Wednesday
HEAT IS ON, BHOYS
Champions will melt in Armenia for Euro opener The heat will be on for Hoops
by Iain Macfarlane
CELTIC'S players are bracing themselves for sweltering heat and fatigue after being handed a testing trek to Armenia in their Champions League opener.
The Hoops have been paired with Alashkert in the first qualifying round, with Norwegian champions Rosenborg their likely opponents if they progress to the next round.
Celtic travel to the former Soviet state on July 10 or 11, with the return leg in Glasgow confirmed for July 18.
Alashkert are sure to be a difficult hurdle to overcome with summer temperatures in the humid capital city Yerevan nudging 35 degrees.
The six-hour flight and three-hour time difference also poses problems for Brendan Rodgers' side, who must win four two-legged ties to reach the Champions League group stage.
In 2015, Alashkert won their first ever European tie when they dumped St Johnstone out of the Europa League on away goals after following up a 1-0 home win with a 2-1 defeat at McDiarmid Park.
Celtic assistant boss Chris Davies said: "It's a difficult trip. We have to bear in mind the heat will be there and we have to adapt slightly on a tactical side and how you approach phases of the game when it's so hot.
"But we've been through it before.We know it's a challenge to qualify for the Champions League. We're under no illusions at all.
"We travel there first and then at home second, which is a positive.
"The simplicity is that if we play to our level and intensity then we'll beat them. But we won't underestimate them and there will be no complacency whatosever.
"As we've seen before, these teams are tricky to play against. But we're excited about the challenges ahead and look forward to the games."
Celtic have faced a sweat – quite literally – to progress through the qualifiers in the past two seasons.
Heat and travel were factors in games against teams from Israel and Kazakhstan, with the Scottish champions losing both away games and progressing thanks to big wins on home turf.
On the field, Alashkert should not be at Celtic's level, but with the games coming just three weeks into pre-season, manager Rodgers knows there is work to be done in the four friendlies they have before the trip to Armenia.
The Hoops have three games in a 10-day training trip to Austria before sending a team to Dublin to face Shamrock Rovers.
Should Celtic see off Alashkert, they will face the winners of Valur v Rosenborg, with the Norwegians favourites to beat their Icelandic opponents.
That would be a rematch of last season's third qualifying round tie.
Last year a goal from James Forrest, above, in Trondheim was all that separated the teams over 180 minutes, and Davies is well aware of the scale of the task that could lie ahead.
"That illustrates where it's at at the moment," he said.
"There's no doubt in anyone's mind – players, staff, supporters – that it is a challenge to get into the Champions League.
"The positive to take from that potential game is that we've beaten them before and probably the hardest way as we had to play away second.
"Their style and players won't have changed too much.
"Scouts will work on Rosenborg in preparation for that eventuality, but it's all about being ready for the first game and being at our best to get through that round. It's all about Alashkert."
Hearts striker Steven MacLean expects Celtic to face a slog in Armenia, just like he and his St Johnstone team-mates did three years ago.
He recalled: "Before kick-off we went out to do our usual warm-up, but Alashkert's players were just ambling about and we soon found out why that was.
"I lost about half a stone that night – most of us did – and we all had to change our strips at half-time because they were absolutely saturated with sweat.
"They were experts at all the dark arts – timewasting and all of that nonsense – so Celtic should expect to have to deal with that as well.
"However, Brendan Rodgers has quality players so I'm sure they'll have enough in their locker to get past them."