- 1 Celtic vs Besiktas: 35th in Europe against a side on seven points
- 2 Celtic: eight wins from nine in the league, four straight defeats in Europe
- 3 Besiktas: Oh Hyeon-gyu, Olaitan and a squad thinned out by injuries
- 4 Free Football Prediction: Celtic vs Besiktas
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
Celtic vs Besiktas: 35th in Europe against a side on seven points 
Celtic are 35th of 36 in the Europa League table. Only Ararat-Armenia sit below them, and only on goal difference, after three defeats from three matches.
That position matters more than it might seem at this stage. The top eight go straight into the last 16 and the sides from ninth to 24th go into a play-off round, which is the realistic target for Martin O’Neill’s side. With 15 points left to play for, Celtic need to start collecting them on Thursday.
The defeats came in sequence: 3-1 at home to Ferencváros on the opening night, 4-1 in Lisbon against Benfica, and 2-1 at home to Celta Vigo on 22 October after Mika Baur had put Celtic ahead. Go back to the Champions League play-off against LASK, when a four-goal aggregate lead disappeared, and Celtic have lost four European matches in a row, conceding 14 goals.
Besiktas come to Glasgow on seven points and eighth in the table, inside the automatic qualification places. Vincenzo Italiano’s side beat Marseille 4-1 in Istanbul, won 3-2 at Hoffenheim and drew 2-2 with Crystal Palace while playing the last part of the game with ten men.
Kick-off at Celtic Park is on Thursday 5 November at 20:00 UK time. The market prices Besiktas at 2.25, the draw at 3.60 and Celtic at 2.80, which is an unusual set of numbers for a Scottish champion at home.
I think the bookmakers have read this one correctly, because Celtic’s domestic form and their European form have stopped describing the same team.
Celtic: eight wins from nine in the league, four straight defeats in Europe 
In the Premiership, Celtic look like champions. They won eight of their first nine league games, beat Hearts 7-1 at Celtic Park on 18 October and went to Easter Road a week later to win 2-1, with Camilo Durán scoring the winner.
Durán, signed from Qarabağ in July, has carried the scoring. He’s into double figures for the season in all competitions, and he scored in Europe as well as in the Champions League qualifiers.
The cracks show at the back. Celtic drew 2-2 at home with Dundee United on 28 October, with Scales heading one of the goals, and they’ve now conceded in every match since the 7-1 against Hearts. Against Benfica and Celta they conceded six goals in two European games.
Alistair Johnston is the latest problem. The right-back has picked up a new hamstring injury and is expected to miss four games, which rules him out of Thursday’s match. He had already come off soon after going on as a substitute at Easter Road.
Baur’s comments after the Celta defeat were unusually frank. The midfielder, signed from Paderborn in August, said that at the moment Celtic perhaps aren’t capable of winning these games, and O’Neill’s own message was that his side still have a chance but need to find a way to win in Europe.
The fixture list doesn’t get easier. After Besiktas come trips to Torreense and Omonia, then Marseille at home and Union Saint-Gilloise away in January, so a home game against a side in this form is probably the least forgiving of the five.
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Besiktas: Oh Hyeon-gyu, Olaitan and a squad thinned out by injuries 
Besiktas have been more dangerous in Europe than at home. They beat Marseille 4-1 on 17 September, and their 3-2 win in Sinsheim on 15 October came from three goals in about 20 minutes of the second half.
Oh Hyeon-gyu was the difference in Germany. The South Korea striker scored twice and set up Amir Murillo’s opener, the third goal coming on 79 minutes from Ilhan Fakılı’s cross.
The Palace game showed both sides of Italiano’s team. Wilfred Ndidi scored in first-half stoppage time, Palace turned it around with goals from Yeremy Pino and Jean-Philippe Mateta inside four minutes, and substitute Junior Olaitan equalised from outside the box on 73 minutes. Four minutes later Ümit Akdağ was sent off for a foul on Jørgen Strand Larsen, which means a suspension for the defender in Glasgow.
Akdağ isn’t the only absence. Fabio Miretti went off injured after 39 minutes against Palace and was expected to be out for several weeks, while Orkun was hurt in the win at Hoffenheim.
The domestic results have been uneven. Besiktas lost 2-0 at Trabzonspor on 19 October and 3-2 at Amedspor in September, but beat Kocaelispor 2-1 and then Başakşehir 2-0 on 26 October, with Olaitan scoring again. They play at Kasımpaşa on Sunday, four days before the trip to Scotland.
Italiano said after the Palace game that his side might have won it with eleven men. That’s a fair reading of a team that has scored nine goals in three European matches, and that output is what matters against a Celtic defence leaking goals every week.
Probable lineup Celtic: Not announced at time of publication
Probable lineup Besiktas: Not announced at time of publication
Free Football Prediction: Celtic vs Besiktas
Our prediction: Besiktas to win (2.25)
Celtic have lost four European matches in a row and conceded 14 goals doing it, and they’ll be without Johnston on Thursday. Their league form is strong, but the Scottish results haven’t carried over into Europe at any point this season.
Besiktas have scored nine times in three Europa League games, including three away at Hoffenheim, and they’ve shown they can score in different ways: Oh in behind, Olaitan from distance, Ndidi from midfield. The absences of Akdağ and Miretti weaken them, but the squad has coped with ten men against a stronger side than this.
The obvious risk is a Celtic Park crowd and a home side that has to win. I’d still rather back the team on seven points that keeps scoring away from home than a side still without a point in this league phase.
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