The Scottish champions are attempting to secure continental football for the coming months and they must see off Lithuanian opposition to do so Celtic will be aiming to book their place in the Europa League group stage on Thursday when they welcome Suduva to Glasgow for the second leg of their play-off tie. Brendan Rodgers' side were held to a 1-1 draw in the first leg, which took place in Lithuania last week, and the expectation is that they will finish the job at Celtic Park. However, despite boasting an away goal and home advantage in the second leg, the Scottish champions cannot afford to take anything for granted, having already tasted Champions League elimination. The financial blow of missing out on a place at the top table of European football will be softened somewhat with a win, which will ensure lucrative continental games until winter at least. Game Celtic vs Suduva Marijampole Date Thursday, August 30 Time 8pm BST / 3pm ET TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch In the United States (US) the game will be not be shown live on television, but it is available to stream live online outside of the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland via Celtic TV. US TV channel Online stream N/A Celtic TV In the UK, the game is not available to watch live on television, nor can it be streamed live online, but you can follow live updates with Goal, here. UK TV channel Online stream N/A N/A Squads & Team News Position Celtic squad Goalkeepers Gordon, Bain, Hazard, Mullen Defenders J. Hendry, Simunovic, Gamboa, Boyata, Lustig, Compper, Ajer, Church, Duffy, Deas, McInroy, Ralston, Walsh, Tierney, Bell Midfielders Brown, Sinclair, Morgan, Rogic, Allan, Ntcham, Robertson, McGregor, Forrest, Henderson, Kennedy, McLaughlin, McKay, Marku, Kouassi Forwards Griffiths, Dembele, Hayes, Christie, Edouard, Miller, R. Hendry, Hill, McGrath, Diver, Johnston, Savoury, Aitchison The return to full fitness of Odsonne Edouard is a boost for Celtic, with the striker recovering from a hamstring injury which kept him out of the last four games. Dedryk Boyata featured in the league victory over Hamilton Academicals at the weekend, scoring the winner, and he may play a part in the game despite being at odds with the club over his future. Potential Celtic XI: Gordon; Lustig, Boyata, Ajer; Tierney, Forrest, Brown, McGregor, Ntcham; Dembele, Edouard. Position Suduva squad Goalkeepers Kardum, Aleksandrov-Ridley, Stebrys Defenders Cinikas, Gaiduchik, Isoda, Svrljuga, Zivanovic, Slavickas, Jankauskas Midfielders Leimonas, Matulevicius, Cadjenovic, Acevedo, Verbickas, Guilherme, Vezevicius, Offenbacher Forwards Kasparavicius, Topcagic, Cicilia A number of players, including Jovan Cadjenovic, Aleksandar Zivanovic and Vitali Gaidechik, as well as manager Vladimir Ceburin, faced visa issues ahead of the game, but all four will be present. Potential Suduva XI: Kardum; Slavickas, Jankauskas, Gaiduchik, Svrljuga; Guilherme, Leimonas, Vezevicius, Cadjenovic, Verbickas; Cicilia. Betting & Match Odds Celtic are strong favourites to come out on top at home, with bet365 offering odds of 1/10 on a Bhoys victory. Suduva are considered a 20/1 bet to win, while a draw, which could see either side progress, is 8/1. Click here to see more offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more. Match Preview Having started the season so strongly Celtic have endured a rough patch over the past month, which has seen them suffer defeat to Hearts in the league as well as Champions League elimination at the hands of AEK Athens. Inconsistent results on the pitch have combined with unrest off it, as a number of players agitate for moves away from Celtic Park, but Rodgers can begin to settle that issue by ensuring the club takes their place in the Europa League group stage. "It's important for us to have European football at least through to Christmas," the former Liverpool boss said ahead of the game. "It's an opportunity for all of us to play against really good teams and work against very good managers and to develop. Article continues below "We have a great opportunity to finish the job at home and go into a prestigious tournament for us which is important." The Bhoys have shown some vulnerability in Europe in recent weeks and, just as they did in the Champions League against AEK Athens, they squandered an early lead against Suduva in the first leg to allow the Lithuanians hope heading into the game in Glasgow. With home support behind them in the second leg, Celtic will need to rise to the occasion as they attempt to avoid further embarrassment and salvage their contintental campaign.<doc-sep>Mark Runnacles/Getty Images Celtic are back in Europa League action tonight as they host FK Suduva. Celtic starting line-up: Gordon; Lustig, Boyata, Ajer, Tierney; Brown, Ntcham, McGregor; Johnston, Sinclair, Griffiths. Celtic substitutes: Bain, Izaguirre, Gamboa, Hayes, Christie, Rogic, Forrest. Celtic can book a place in the group stage of the Europa League tonight if they can see off Lithuanian side FK Suduva at Celtic Park this evening, just hours after rivals Rangers made it through. The Bhoys drew 1-1 in Lithuania last week and need to avoid embarrassment tonight, with the away goal scored a week ago a major boost to Brendan Rodgers’ side. Roy Keane and the growing links to Celtic Tonight, Rodgers has once again gone with veteran Craig Gordon in goal, with wantaway defender Dedryck Boyata in the back four along with Mikael Lustig, Kristoffer Ajer and Kieran Tierney. Scott Brown will sit in front of the back four, with Callum McGregor and Olivier Ntcham – another player linked with a move away – starting ahead of him in midfield. Youngster Mikey Johnston starts again having been handed a similar role last week, with Scott Sinclair on the opposite flank and Leigh Griffiths leading the attack for the Bhoys. Moussa Dembele isn’t in the squad at all today, with questions still lingering over the Frenchman’s future after a bid from Lyon ahead of Friday’s European transfer deadline. Tom Rogic is on the bench though, alongside Scott Bain, Emilio Izaguirre, Cristian Gamboa, Jonny Hayes, Ryan Christie and James Forrest. In other news, Report: Four players face Southampton exit including Newcastle-linked ace<doc-sep>Vagelis Georgariou/Action Plus via Getty Images Celtic take on Lithuanian side FK Suduva in the Europa League tonight. Celtic starting line-up: Gordon; Gamboa, Simunovic, Ajer, Tierney; Brown, Ntcham; Forrest, McGregor, Johnston; Dembele. Celtic substitutes: Bain, Izaguirre, Lustig, Kouassi, Griffiths, Rogic, Sinclair. Celtic are in Europa League qualifying action this evening as they travel to take on FK Suduva, with a win taking the Bhoys a step closer to a group stage spot in the competition. After their disastrous Champion League qualifying exit at the hands of AEK Athens last week, Celtic have to move on to the next best alternative, which is a passage towards the Europa League. Roy Keane and the growing links to Celtic Brendan Rodgers will be hoping to make the most of this opportunity, and has gone with a strong line-up, starting with goalkeeper Craig Gordon between the sticks for Celtic. Cristian Gamboa continues at right back ahead of Mikael Lustig, with Jozo Simunovic and Kristoffer Ajer featuring at centre back in Dedryck Boyata’s absence, whilst Kieran Tierney is at left back. Scott Brown and linked-away Olivier Ntcham feature in the centre of midfield, whilst Callum McGregor starts in attacking midfield, with James Forrest and youngster Mikey Johnston on the flanks, as Johnston makes his first European start for the club. Moussa Dembele features in attack with Odsonne Edouard unavailable, and Leigh Griffiths is only on the bench as Rodgers goes with just the one striker tonight. Scott Bain, Emilio Izaguirre, Eboue Kouassi, Tom Rogic and Scott Sinclair are all named on the bench, joining Lustig and Griffiths as substitutes. In other news, Daniel Levy may soon make a move that could make Spurs fans and Dele Alli very happy – Our View<doc-sep>Celtic 3 FK Suduva 0; agg 4-1 Goals from Leigh Griffiths – his 100th for Celtic – Callum McGregor and Kris Ajer ensured that Brendan Rodgers’s men would have Europa League football until Christmas at least, as they dealt efficiently with a lacklustre FK Suduva side in their play-off second leg at Parkhead. If some home fans expressed mild frustration that their heroes were somewhat one-paced, there were others content with the thought that Celtic had conserved energy ahead of the visit of Rangers on Sunday. There was no place in the squad for Moussa Dembele but, although a £15 million move for the striker to Lyon had seemed likely, Rodgers declared before kick-off that no agreement had been reached. “We don’t want Moussa to go and I can’t see it happening,” he said. “There’s not a huge list of players that can come in and offer the same qualities Moussa gives us.”<doc-sep>
The Scottish champions will hope to redeem themselves by making no mistakes in their attempts to remain involved in European competition Celtic will hope to salvage some pride and take a step towards securing their place in the Europa League group stage when they take on Suduva Marijampole in the first leg of their play-off tie. Brendan Rodgers' men dropped into UEFA's second-tier club competition following their elimination from the Champions League qualifiers at the hands of AEK Athens last week, when they lost 3-2 on aggregate. The defeat is a major blow to the Scottish champions, who had been rubbing shoulders with Europe's elite at the continent's top table in the previous two seasons. In Suduva, they face another team who were dumped out of the Champions League, with the Lithuanian side losing to Red Star Belgrade in the second qualifying round. Game Suduva Marijampole vs Celtic Date Thursday, August 23 Time 6pm BST / 1pm ET TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch In the United States (US) the game will be not be shown live on television, but it is available to stream live online outside of the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland via Celtic TV. US TV channel Online stream N/A Celtic TV In the UK, the game can be viewed live on television on Premier Sports 1 and it can be streamed online using the Premier player. UK TV channel Online stream Premier Sports 1 Premier player Squads & Team News Position Suduva squad Goalkeepers Kardum, Aleksandrov-Ridley, Stebrys Defenders Cinikas, Gaiduchik, Isoda, Svrljuga, Zivanovic, Slavickas, Jankauskas Midfielders Leimonas, Matulevicius, Cadjenovic, Acevedo, Verbickas, Guilherme, Vezevicius, Offenbacher Forwards Kasparavicius, Topcagic, Cicilia Suduva will look to Brazilian midfielder Guilherme Finkler for inspiration, while striker Rigino Cicilia is their main goal threat and has already scored three goals in six European outings this season. As well as that, there are a number of Lithuania internationals in the squad, including former Zenit midfielder Ovidijus Verbickas. Potential Suduva XI: Kardum; Slavickas, Jankauskas, Gaiduchik, Svrljuga; Leimonas, Guilherme, Vezevicius, Cadjenovic, Verbickas; Cicilia. Position Celtic squad Goalkeepers Gordon, Bain, Hazard, Mullen Defenders J. Hendry, Simunovic, Gamboa, Boyata, Lustig, Compper, Ajer, Church, Duffy, Deas, McInroy, Ralston, Walsh, Tierney, Bell Midfielders Brown, Sinclair, Morgan, Rogic, Allan, Ntcham, Robertson, McGregor, Forrest, Henderson, Kennedy, McLaughlin, McKay, Marku, Kouassi Forwards Griffiths, Dembele, Hayes, Christie, Edouard, Miller, R. Hendry, Hill, McGrath, Diver, Johnston, Savoury, Aitchison Rodgers says that want-away defender Dedryk Boyata remains in contention to play despite discontent brewing over rejected bids for the Belgium international. Leigh Griffiths has returned to full fitness and will be vying for a starting position with Moussa Dembele and Odsonne Edouard. Potential Celtic XI: Gordon; Lustig, Simunovic, Hendry, Tierney; Brown, Forrest, McGregor, Ntcham, Rogic; Griffiths. Betting & Match Odds Celtic are strong favourites to triumph in the first leg, despite being away from home, with bet365 offering odds of 2/5 on a Bhoys victory. Suduva are priced at 15/2 to win and a draw is a 10/3 bet. Match Preview Failure to secure a place in the Champions League group stage this season has led to serious questions being asked of Rodgers and his future as Celtic manager. Missing out on a place in the final 32 of Europe's premier club competition means that the Scottish champions will have to make do without a significant financial boost and they will also lose some of their allure in the transfer market as players consider the pros and cons of joining the Glasgow club. Article continues below However, their elimination blow has been softened somewhat by the chance of taking a proverbial 'back-door' entry into the Europa League, which is a competition they will feel capable of going far in. Off-field issues surrounding key players seeking an exit have not helped amid a run of disappointing results, but Rodgers managed to steady the ship with a convincing 3-1 win over Partick Thistle in the League Cup. With season targets now shifting, the Bhoys will be desperate to take the advantage in Marijampole ahead of the second leg at Celtic Park, where Rodgers and Co. can dispel any lingering doubts.