Celtic vs LASK Linz Betting Tips & Preview

Celtic to win

Celtic head into this Champions League play-off in the sort of form that makes them the obvious pick, and that's the case for backing them here. Five wins from five in their most recent outings tells its own story, and while LASK Linz arrive with an identical run of results behind them, the Scottish champions carry the edge in overall pedigree that tends to matter in these two-legged European ties. There's no history between the clubs to lean on, so this is largely a case of reading current form and squad strength, and on both counts Celtic look the stronger side. The 1.65 on offer reflects a strong favourite, and while that price is simply context rather than the reason for the selection, the outcome itself — Celtic getting the win — is what we're backing as the most probable result.

Recent Form

Celtic's last five games make for tidy reading: victories over Rangers, Motherwell and Hearts in May were followed by wins against Dundee and Kilmarnock in August as the new domestic season got under way. That's an unbroken run of five straight wins heading into this fixture, spanning both derby-level opposition and mid-table sides, which suggests a squad that's been picking up momentum rather than coasting into the campaign.

LASK Linz can point to the same perfect record on paper. Wins over Salzburg and Austria Wien in May were followed by a summer that's seen them beat Grazer AK, Austria Wien again, and Ried in their most recent outing on 14 August. Beating Salzburg and doing the double over Austria Wien will have given them real confidence, and they clearly arrive here in good touch rather than as makeweights.

Head-to-Head

There's nothing to draw on here. Our records show no previous meetings between Celtic and LASK Linz, so this looks to be either a first-ever competitive encounter between the two clubs or a fixture whose history simply isn't captured in the data available. Either way, there's no head-to-head pattern to factor into the pick, and the assessment rests instead on current form and squad news.

Team News

Celtic have three players unavailable. Luis Palma remains sidelined through suspension, a situation that's been in place since November 2023, while Kasper Schmeichel is out with a shoulder injury dating back to late February 2026. Cameron Carter-Vickers continues to be missing with Achilles tendon problems that have kept him out since October 2025, so Celtic will be without an established option at both goalkeeper and in central defence.

LASK Linz have their own absentees to contend with. Ramiz Harakaté is out with a cruciate ligament tear suffered in late July 2026, a significant injury that typically rules a player out for months, while Jérôme Boateng remains unavailable following groin surgery back in December 2024. Both sides, then, go into this one missing certain established figures, though neither list looks severe enough to be decisive on its own.