Crvena Zvezda and Celtic face off in their opening Europa League clash at the Rajko Mitic Stadium on Thursday night, with both sides eager to make a strong start.
Vladan Milojevic’s men arrive in red-hot form, having netted 14 times across their last three outings, including a 2-1 derby victory over Partizan Belgrade. Meanwhile, Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic are also flying domestically, winning four of their first five league fixtures as they defend their Scottish Premiership crown. They also booked a League Cup semi-final place with a recent win over Partick Thistle.
Crvena Zvezda Team News
The Serbian champions have enjoyed a flawless start to their Superliga campaign with seven wins from seven. Milojevic is expected to field close to his strongest XI, though Rodrigao is a doubt after hobbling off in the Partizan win, while Rade Krunic is sidelined with a muscle problem.
Injury Update – Crvena Zvezda
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Rodrigao – Knock – Possible return: 24 Sept 2025
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Rade Krunic – Muscle issue – Return date unknown
Predicted XI: Matheus; Young-Woo, Lekovic, Veljkovic, Tiknizyan; Radonjic, Handel, Elsnik, Ivanic; Katai, Arnautovic.
Bench Options: Glazer, Rodrigao, Uchenna, Avdic, Milson, Bajo, Kostov, Stankovic, Zaric, Babicka, Bruno.
Celtic Team News
Celtic have once again established control at home, but Rodgers’ men struggled in Europe after failing to score in their Champions League qualifiers against Kairat Almaty. Several key players remain unavailable: Jota (ACL) is out until 2026, Alistair Johnston (hamstring) is sidelined until November, while Auston Trusty and Anthony Ralston are also injury doubts.
Injury Update – Celtic
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Jota – Knee – Return: January 2026
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Alistair Johnston – Hamstring – Return: November 2025
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Auston Trusty – Foot – Return: 24 Sept 2025
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Anthony Ralston – Knock – Return: 24 Sept 2025
Rodgers provided a positive update before the match, highlighting the team’s growing chemistry and determination to make a mark in Europe:
“The spirit in the squad is very strong. We’re building new connections and the players are eager to succeed. This competition is a big challenge, but one we’re ready to embrace.”
Predicted XI: Schmeichel; Donovan, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Tierney; McGregor, Hatate, Nygren; Balikwisha, Maeda, Tounetki.
Bench Options: Sinisalo, Saracchi, Simpson-Pusey, Murray, Engels, Bernardo, McCowan, Forrest, Hyun-Jun, Iheanacho, Kenny.
Rodgers is expected to stick with a familiar lineup, with Kasper Schmeichel and Kieran Tierney among those likely to feature from the start. High-profile names such as Paulo Bernardo, Arne Engels, Johnny Kenny and Kelechi Iheanacho may have to settle for places on the bench.
Match Details
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Fixture: Crvena Zvezda vs Celtic
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Date: Wednesday, September 24, 2025
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Kick-off: 8pm BST
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Venue: Stadion Rajko Mitić, Belgrade
How to Watch
The game will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 2, with coverage beginning at 7pm. Subscribers can also stream the match via discovery+.
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