For Celtic and Red Star Belgrade, Europa League is all about atonement

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The Celtic Star

·23 settembre 2025

For Celtic and Red Star Belgrade, Europa League is all about atonement

After that absolute shambles against Kairat in the Champions League play-off Celtic dropped into the Europa League group stages and it was a similar story for tomorrow evening’s opponents Red Star Belgrade, aka Crvena Zvezda as they lost out to Cypriot side Pafos…

Sebastian Tounekti at Firhill. Partick Thistle v Celtic. Premier Sports League Cup. Sunday 21 September. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

So for both Celtic and Crvena Zvezda, the Europa League is all about atonement…

Cherif Ndiaye of Crvena Zvezda celebrates after scoring a goal during the Serbian SuperLiga season 2024/2025 match between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan at Rajko Mitic Stadium on February 22, 2025 in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)

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From his first media conference ahead of the flag day opener against St Mirren, Brendan Rodgers was pleading for new arrivals to help ensure that the Champions League dream wouldn’t turn into a nightmare but the arrivals never came and that is something that is on the Celtic Board, with Michael Nicholson at least accepting responsibility in his written report contained within the Celtic PLC financial statement released last Friday evening.

Celtic CEO Michael Nicholson at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock v Celtic, 14 September 2025. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

One of those players who could have made a difference against Kairat is Sebastian Tounekti who arrived too late and his first two performances – both outstanding – have left the Celtic support not knowing to laugh or cry when thinking back to the dreadful result against Kairat that killed our Champions League ambitions for another season at the play-off stage and ultimately cost the club the riches of around £40m in income.

Yet they still spent on Tounekti and Balikwisha after the Champions League horse had bolted. If this was a one off then it could be accepted as a dreadful error that would obviously never be repeated but as one of the banners at the weekend pointed out on this one the Celtic Board, especially Peter Lawwell, are repeat offenders.

Celtic fan protest. Partick Thistle v Celtic. Premier Sports League Cup. Sunday 21 September. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Michael Stewart talked extensively about the Celtic fan protest during his co-commentary on Premier Sports at Firhill on Sunday afternoon and pointed to the impact he reckons that Celtic supporters believe that Sebastian Tounekti would have had if he’d been signed in time for those crucial games.

And he continued on this point on the Scottish Football Social Club podcast last night.

“We’d love to know when the first bid was made for Tounekti, and how much. You would love to find that out,” Stewart stated on the Scottish Football Social Club. “So it would give you a real insight into what has actually been going on there. Because even if, for example, it took a couple of extra million quid to get that deal done three weeks earlier, it would have been worth it.

Sebastian Tounekti during the Partick Thistle v Celtic. Premier Sports League Cup. Sunday 21 September. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

“You look at Tounekti there, and you say to yourself, him coming and joining Celtic like he has now, full of confidence and belief, and excited about joining a big new club, going into the Champions League qualifiers. I asked that, obviously, of Brendan yesterday, and understandably, the manager wanted to look ahead. He didn’t want to continually look back.

“But I’ll guarantee you, privately, he would have been thinking that if Tounekti was in the team, they would have stood a far greater opportunity of beating Kairat, especially at home.”

Stewart’s comments echo the views of so many Celtic supporters and probably Brendan Rodgers himself, although the Celtic manager is done talking about it and is looking to the season ahead starting tomorrow night in Belgrade.

1 charlatan Chairman. 2 incompetent Execs. 7 unanswered questions. 19 days of silence. 420 letter signatories. 3,000+ late entries v Kilmarnock. 5,000+ holding posters v Partick Thistle. The Celtic support is united, demanding answers and campaigning for change.
– lunedì 22 settembre 2025