The former Celtic striker hero picks over the bones of yet another Euro embarrassment and addresses long term fears

It’s bleedingly obvious Celtic are going to need reinforcements in January to sort out the glaring deficiencies in this squad.

But here’s a big question?

What decent player is going to want to come to a club that is seemingly happy to be European also-rans at best and whipping boys at worst?

Seriously.

There has probably been high-fiving and backslapping in the Celtic boardroom about getting the likes of Camilo Duran and Kasper Hogh.

But those players were likely signed with the promise of competing in the Champions League – not propping up the Europa.

It’s going to be a harder sell if they are already out of the competition with games to go and looking like a club with very little ambition to do much about it in the future.

And the same goes for hanging on to their decent players. If a big bid comes in for someone like Duran, why wouldn’t he jump ship if it’s a club that is going places?

That might sound harsh, but how else can you view it after Thursday night.

It was desperate.

Celtic fans wanted a team that could compete in the Champions League. Instead they have one that keeps getting embarrassed in the second tier.

They would have been better off doing a Derek McInnes and getting bombed out of Europe altogether.

Martin O’Neill will say Celtic can still qualify but even he will know deep down it’s pie in the sky.

It doesn’t matter that there are still plenty of points out there and it might only take about eight or nine of them to finish in the top 24.

The reality is Celtic don’t look equipped.

Any time they come up against any half-decent team they are found wanting.

I’ve called them a Jekyll and Hyde team. Fans are going to have to be Jekyll and Hyde as well.

They might have to paint on a smile for the domestic stuff and accept they are flat-track bullies when they come up against teams who are blunt going forward and poor at the back.

But then they will need to grin and bear it when they take doings at European level.

It’s thoroughly depressing. It’s one thing accepting getting your backsides booted by PSG, Barcelona or Borussia Dortmund.

But getting a chasing by LASK, Ferencvaros and Celta Vigo?

It’s painful. I don’t like harping back but there was a time when teams didn’t enjoy coming to Celtic Park.

Now it’s party time. Celta Vigo brought a record number of fans the other night – because they knew there was a good chance of seeing a win.

That’s the worst thing. The defeat was not surprising. It was entirely predictable.

Some of us have been saying it for weeks and months. O’Neill will take a lot of responsibility, and rightly so, but everyone can see he’s been sold short in terms of personnel.

The old cliche about a team only being as strong as its bench – take a look at Celtic’s subs the other night.

Callum Osmand went off with cramp but it says it all: so much hope is being placed on a kid coming back from long-term injuries and only making his second senior start.

The issues are all over the park. The goalkeeping situation has backfired as well.

Some people reckon Sam Johnstone should have done better for Celta Vigo’s equaliser.

I think that’s a bit harsh, but it doesn’t matter. The rotation between him and Viljami Sinisalo hasn’t helped either.

Sinisalo was undermined by being dropped a few weeks ago and it might have hit his confidence.

He gets back in but is out again soon after and Johnstone still doesn’t look the most comfortable.

O’Neill has another big decision this weekend but it really should be a case of picking his best keeper and getting on with it.

Mind you, this should have been nailed down months ago as Celtic had a year to prepare for Kasper Schmeichel leaving.

It’s just another example of the muddled-up thinking at the club.

There will be pressure on now from the fans but it could quite easily be eased again this weekend.

Hibs have had no new manager bounce and if anything look worse under Marink Reedijk.

Celtic could go there and win comfortably. So would that mean everything is rosy in the garden again?

I wouldn’t say so. Perhaps this is where the Parkhead hierarchy are comfortable. They can deal with teams domestically and just turn up and show face in Europe.

It’s not enough for supporters, that’s for sure. I’m not even sure it’s enough for the league either.

Celtic have enough in attack to punish most teams and it will keep them in the title race.

But there are going to be times when these performances catch up with them on the home front.

They are so easy to play against it’s frightening. Celta had 20 attempts on goal, it was the same with Benfica, LASK had 40 in that shocking second leg and Rangers created a fair few as well.

But Hearts also had 20 despite getting hammered, St Mirren managed 19 and Dundee United hit the woodwork five times.

That’s not sustainable.

Celtic might get away with it most weeks because teams in Scotland lack quality in the final third.

But there are going to be days when rivals have the shooting boots on and they are going to make this Celtic team pay.

The flat-track bullies are going to take a few counter punches and it will be the same all the way to January.

Even then, good luck attracting top talent when they look at the Europa table and see Celtic sitting below European powerhouses such as Lillestrom, OFI Crete and Jagiellonia.