Champions League Qualifier
Wednesday July 27th

Artmedia Bratislava 5

Celtic 0

1:0 Halenar 43
2:0 Vascak 57
3:0 Halenar 75
4:0 Mikulic 78
5:0 Halenar 90 subs

Att: 17,262

ref: Selcuk Dereli

Celtic:
Marshall Telfer Balde Varga Camara Petrov Lennon Thompson Sutton Zurawski Hartson
subs
Maloney for Wallace 53
Beattie for Zurawski 63
Aliadiere for Thompson 87

'Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.' - Napoleon Bonaparte

Aftershocks from the end of season defeat at Motherwell reached cataclysmic proportions in Bratislava as Celtic endured their worst night in living memory. As a veteran of the Neuchatel debacle, I can confidently assert that this was worse.

Gordon Strachan's first foray into Europe with Celtic was on a par with lighting a bonfire on the Hindenburg. The team lacked leadership, confidence and any sense of urgency. The defence was out of its depth. Camara in particular, looked bewildered, but he had a few mates for company as Bratislavan players sped past them time and again. Telfer didn't do much better.

A complacent Celtic side simply collapsed and were humiliated with a five nil drubbing.

At 2:0 down, and Sutton off with a fractured cheek following a collision with a leaden-footed Lennon, the team did actually make one or two chances which might have rescued the tie. Maloney squandered his and McGeady missed a tap-in in front of an empty net.

Nothing can be said of this game other than it was an all time low. No team has ever turned round a 5:0 scoreline in Europe.

The really annoying thing is that Bratislava didn't even look remotely good. Celtic were just that poor. If this is what Strachan has to offer, the signs are that we are in for an apocalyptic season.