Opinion: Time for Celtic to end 18 years of underachievement in Europe

Celtic return to European action this midweek with a Europa Conference League knockout tie against Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt, with the first leg taking place at Celtic Park on Thursday night.

Whilst all the focus has been on domestic matters recently, Celtic’s decent performances in the group stage of the Europa League should not be overlooked.

Ange Postecoglou’s were in a very difficult group, but still managed to finish third and book a place in the Europa Conference League knockout round, which is a decent achievement.

The Australian manager will want his Hoops side to take that next step and book their place in the 16 of the Europa Conference League, but history isn’t on his side when it comes to that matter.

Incredibly enough, Celtic have not won a knockout tie in Europe since 2004, when a David Marshall inspired side helped the Bhoys to a goalless draw against Barcelona and a 1-0 win on aggregate.

For a club with a proud European pedigree, that is a really bad record. The Hoops have badly underachieved in Europe in the last 18 years. If the Celtic manager can bring an end to that run, it will be a real feather in the cap for Postecoglou.

When you look at the players and managers that Celtic have had at the club in recent years, the likes of Brendan Rodgers, Moussa Dembele and Kieran Tierney, the Hoops haven’t been able to take that next step in Europe.

Making progress in Europe should not be beyond Celtic, even if the club would rather make progress in the Champions League or the Europa League, rather than the new Europa Conference League.

However, you need to start somewhere, and a win over Bodo/Glimt would give the Hoops not only plenty of confidence for the rest of the Europa Conference League but for how the