Martin O’Neill knows his side face a very tough test on Thursday night when they face Benfica at Estádio da Luz in Lisbon.
But the UEFA Europa League clash is one that the manager and his squad are looking forward to.
The Hoops suffered a home defeat to Fernecvaros on matchday one of the league phase of the competition, while Benfica beat AC Milan in the San Siro.
So ahead of back-to-back home fixtures against Celta Vigo and Besiktas, the Celtic manager is looking for a positive result in Portugal.
Speaking at Estádio da Luz tonight (Wednesday), Martin O’Neill said: “We're looking forward to the game. It's a big match for us.
'Benfica got a really good result against AC Milan in the opening game of this league phase, and it'll naturally be a tough game, but that's the nature of it.'
“I think I said at the press conference that they'll be disappointed they're not in the Champions League, and they would be one of the favourites to win this competition.
“But we're genuinely looking forward to it. It'll be a really big test for us, but it's one that we want to experience.”
And while the Scottish Champions are under no illusions as to Benfica’s quality, the aim is also to cause the Portuguese side problems over the course of the contest in the Portuguese capital.
“Our ambition is to try and qualify for the knockout stages of the competition, which is sometime in February, so we've got some time in which to do it,” said the manager.
'We didn't get off to a great start in it, but the players are looking forward to the games. They want to play and they want to contest European football.'
“Benfica have got a lot of good players, and they will also have gained a great deal of confidence from starting off the competition by winning in Milan.
"That's not easy, so they have very good players, but so have we and we want to try and cause them a few problems ourselves.”
In terms of the Celtic squad, Cameron Carter-Vickers is still out with a strain, although Auston Trusty is fit and available for selection.
And while Camilo Duran didn’t travel with the team, the Celtic manager is hopeful the Colombian striker will join up with the team after being at the birth of his baby.
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Sport Lisboa e Benfica Vs. Celtic - Thu, Oct 10th 2026, 19:00 Match Information | Buy Tickets