Preview | Omonia v Celta: Europe to restore confidence | OneFootball

The Vigo side begins its Europa League campaign for the second season in a row, once again aiming for its first win of the season

It seems that Celta is living through a cyclical process. Tomorrow at 18:45 the sky-blue team makes its European debut, with a match that on paper looks simple but has picked up complications that could lead to an upset. Added to a 5-hour trip, the longest so far in the "Giráldez era," there is also the wonder of scheduling, which leaves the Vigo side facing its second match in 6 days with only "one training session," as the coach said in the press conference.

The similarities with last season are becoming more and more visible. In that opener in Stuttgart, Celta had still not won a single match all season. The 2-1 defeat deepened a crisis that worsened that weekend against Elche, where they lost again to another goal by Borja Iglesias. Now they arrive in a similar situation, although Claudio is trying to calm the waters with what happened afterward and with some aspects that have improved compared to last season, especially defensively.

Even so, what concerns Celta is its attacking play. The team is creating and scoring much less than last season, which is obviously dragging down results, since for Claudio "the lack of fortune in turning good spells into goals has punished us too much in the less positive moments." That is why Europe could be an "oasis," a turning point for the team, which, although it will return to Balaídos on Saturday tired and facing a difficult rival like Racing, can at least regain some confidence.

For the European opener, Giráldez is waiting until tomorrow to know which 23 players he will have available. In the squad list released by the club were the 3 players who missed the match against Málaga with fitness issues: Borja Iglesias, Aleix Febas and Jones El-Abdellaoui, although the big absence is Iago Aspas. The player from Moaña will not be able to make his debut with the team in his final season in sky blue due to a muscle tear in the rectus femoris of his left thigh. His absence is a major blow because of everything he represents and because a large part of his minutes last season came in Europe, leading to more rotation than expected. Although Claudio did not admit it, the most likely scenario is a change in goal and for Altay Bayïndir to make his debut between the posts for the Vigo side, as he was signed to be a reliable backup to Andrei Radu, who could be rested for Saturday’s match against Racing.

Celta has an obligation to take all 3 points against Omonia. The Cypriot side stands out for being strong when sitting deep and for counterattacking with the pace of its wingers. There are many parallels with last year’s match against Ludogorets in Razgrad, where the sky-blue side went in as favorites, fielded a lineup more like one they would use in the Copa del Rey, and ended up losing. And to add to the sense of danger, the referee from that day, Hungarian official Balázs Berke, will take charge of today’s clash at 18:45. The pressure is real, as the European schedule will be complicated and will then be followed by a run of matches against European-level opponents such as Juventus, Celtic in Glasgow, Bournemouth, and Marseille at the Vélodrome.

Winning will be a must for Celta, who will look to begin their Europa League adventure by doing what is required: taking all 3 points and putting together a performance that helps restore lost confidence. Tomorrow’s match is a trap game. It must be approached that way and serve as the statement win that finally allows the team to kick off the new season.

Probable lineups

Omonia: Fabiano; Duverne, Satka, Coulibaly, Balkovec; Maric, Andreou; Mayabela, Tankovic, Montnor; Diony

Celta: Bayïndir; Javi Rodríguez, Starfelt, Faye; Álvaro Núñez, Hugo Burcio, Miguel Román, Javi Galán; Hugo Álvarez, Swedberg; Pablo Durán

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.