Celtic must achieve something never seen before in the Europa League after Celta Vigo defeat

Just when it seemed as though Celtic's European campaign could not get any worse, this team finds a way to plunder new depths. On Thursday, despite taking the lead through Mika Baur, the Hoops were beaten again in the Europa League, this time 2-1 at the hands of Celta Vigo; Javi Rodríguez scoring twice in four minutes.

Having also been smashed by both Ferencváros at home and Benfica at Estádio da Luz, the Scottish champions remain pointless three matches into the Europa League. The only other sides yet to get off the mark are Ararat-Armenia, who were founded in 2017, Viktoria Plzeň, currently ninth in the Czech Republic, and crisis club Olympique de Marseille.

Most would consider Celtic to be a Champions League level club and, had it not been for an unprecedented collapse in Linz, they would be. Thus, struggling to compete at Europa League level is totally unacceptable and galling for supporters.

Last season, the Celts snuck through in 23rd place, winning three matches and accumulating 11 points, before being swatted aside by Stuttgart. Well, having lost three out of three this time round, history suggests knockout phase football will not be heading to Glasgow in February.

Teams to have lost first 3 matches in the Europa League league phase

It may only be a small sample size of two seasons but, all seven previous clubs to have lost their first three matches of a Europa League league phase have been eliminated. During the first edition, ten points were required to progress, while Brann snuck through on nine last time round.

However, the most points any side with zero after three matches were able to recover to accumulate was six, achieved by both Maccabi Tel Aviv and RB Salzburg. A year ago, Celts were more than willing to laugh at Rangers, who were in an identical position.

Led by Russell Martin, albeit briefly, and then Danny Röhl, the Gers were beaten by Genk, Sturm Graz, Brann and then Roma, later losing against Ferencváros and Porto on the road, merely holding Braga to a draw and narrowly beating Ludogorets Razgrad, ending up with a miserly return of four points. Well, Celtic could be set for an equally miserable campaign.

To have any chance of getting through, Martin O'Neill's team have to pick up at least ten points from their remaining three fixtures. However, Beşiktaş' visit to Parkhead in a fortnight looks tough, followed by away games against Portuguese second-division side Torreense and then Omonia. Both should be winnable but, with this current team, you just never know.

By the time the Hoops welcome Marseille to Glasgow in January, and then take on Royale Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium, they could already be out of the running.