Our prediction for this Europa League match:
Celtic
Match Time & Date:
18/08/2021
02:45 PM
Prediction: 2-1
AZ
All eyes will be on Celtic Park when Celtic and AZ Alkmaar take on each other in the Europa League play-offs, first leg. The Hoops rolled over Jablonec 7-2 on agg. to set up a meeting with AZ Alkmaar, and we are positive that they will adopt yet another attack-minded approach in Wednesday’s football game. Both Leigh Griffiths and Christopher Jullien are likely to miss the game through injuries.
AZ Alkmaar, on the other hand, kicked off the new Eredivisie campaign with a shocking 1-0 loss to RKC Waalwijk. Considering that Celtic have been producing excellent displays in the Europa League qualifiers, we predict that Pascal Jansen’s troops are going to return home empty-handed. It has to be noted that the two teams meet for the first time ever in European competitions. Defender Owen Wijndal is injured for the visiting team.
Highlighted Player (Christopher Jullien):
Christopher Jullien is a professional footballer who plays for Toulouse as a defender. The 195-cm-tall centre-back played for Auxere youth team from 2005 to 2011 and he made his first-team debut for the club on August 24, 2012 in a 2-1 win over Stade Lavallois.
Christopher Jullien scored his first ever goal a week later in a Coupe de la Ligue clash against Dijon. The French defender made 25 appearances in the league for Auxerre and in 2013 he moved to Germany, signing a professional contract with Freiburg. Jullien made only one appearance for the first team, but it has to be noted that he scored five goals in 49 games for the second team. After ending his loan spell with Dijon in the summer of 2016, he signed a four-year deal with Ligue 1 side Toulouse.
Christopher Jullien scored four goals, while providing one assist for his teammates in the 2016/2017 Ligue 1 campaign. The French footballer was born on March 22, 1993 in Lagny-sur-Marne and his preferred foot is right.
Highlighted Team (AZ):
AZ Alkmaar are a professional football club that play their home matches at AFAS Stadion. The venue was opened on 4 August, 2006 and the construction of the stadium cost €38 million. AFAS Stadion is able to hold 17 023 spectators.
The Cheeseheads were founded on 10 May, 1967 and they won their first trophy in 1981, finishing the season 12 points clear of Dutch giants Ajax. 18 years later AZ clinched their second Eredivisie trophy, with the team finishing the 2008/2009 campaign with 80 points, 11 clear of second-placed Twente. In 1981 the club made it to the UEFA Cup final, but English side Ipswich Town proved to be a big catch for the Dutch team.
AZ’s home kits are red and white and they wear black shirts when playing on the road. The likes of Shota Arveladze, Jozy Altidore, Ron Vlaar, Joris Mathijsen, Graziano Pelle, Simon Poulsen, Moussa Dembele and Sergio Romero are notable footballers who played for AZ in the past.
Leicester
Chelsea
Arsenal
Nottingham Forest
Aston Villa
Crystal Palace 
Milan 
Juventus 
Man City
Tottenham
Celta Vigo 
Barcelona 
