Woeful Celtic crash out of Champions League after shootout defeat to Kairat Almaty

Scottish giants Celtic crashed out of the Champions League qualifiers in Kazakhstan as Daizen Maeda missed a sitter in normal time and a crucial penalty in a shootout defeat to Kairat Almaty.

The Hoops failed to score over 210 minutes of football against opponents ranked 311th in Europe, and will now have to settle for a place in the Europa League – missing out on an estimated £20m in revenue.

Maeda spurned the best chance to win it late in normal time when he fired over from Callum McGregor’s through ball, and then compounded the misery by failing from the spot in the decisive shootout.

Adam Idah and Luke McCowan also missed penalties in a miserable night for Brendan Rodgers’ side.

The result sparked fresh anger among supporters who had already voiced frustration over the lack of summer signings after the first leg, chanting “Sack the Board” at Celtic Park.

Lack of signings proves costly

Celtic’s failure to strengthen in attack was exposed once more, with Jota sidelined since May and Nicolas Kühn sold to Como, Rodgers was left without a natural winger.

Shin Yamada, signed as the only experienced striker after Kyogo Furuhashi’s January exit, remained unused on the bench.

Rodgers had spoken of building on last season’s run to the Champions League knockout play-off round, but the club’s sluggish transfer activity has undermined those ambitions.

Match summary

Despite Kairat missing several key players – including injured goalkeeper Alexandr Zarutskiy and suspended 17-year-old talent Dastan Satpaev – Celtic struggled to impose themselves.

James Forrest saw a first-half header tipped over, while substitute McCowan and Gustaf Nygren both forced late saves.

Kasper Schmeichel kept Celtic level with smart stops and Cameron Carter-Vickers produced a vital block to prevent a Kairat winner in extra-time.

But in penalties, Celtic’s composure deserted them, leaving Kairat to celebrate a famous victory.

Reaction

Rodgers admitted the result was a crushing setback:

“It’s very frustrating. We created opportunities but didn’t take them. Europa League is still a prestigious competition, but we’ve missed a massive opportunity across these two games. It’s a huge blow.”

Former Celtic defender Mark Wilson was scathing in his assessment:

“Did the board gamble on the players they had to get through? It’s backfired dramatically. Celtic were poor over 210 minutes, created very little, and Kairat deserved their reward. It’s a sobering moment for the club.”

What’s next?

Celtic must quickly regroup ahead of the first Old Firm derby of the season against Rangers at Ibrox on Sunday.

Despite the European disappointment, they still hold a six-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership.