CHRIS Davies, the Celtic assistant manager, insisted complacency wouldn't be a problem as his team face a 7000-mile round trip at the start of their Champions League campaign.
The double treble winners were drawn against minnows Alashkert of Armenia in their first qualifier, with either Rosenborg or Reykjavik waiting for them in the next round.
Davies acknowledged that the journey and searing heat in the Armenian capital Yerevan would prove a challenge, but believed Celtic’s squad had the experience to get negotiate the tie.
He said: “It is a difficult trip. For us, we have been through this before as a staff and the players, so we know it is a real challenge to qualify for the Champions League. We are under no allusions at all about that.
“We travel their first and then are at home in the second-leg, which is a positive. The simplicity for us is if we play to our level, to our normal way and intensity, then we will beat them.
“We won’t under-estimate them. There will be no complacency at all because we have seen before that these teams can be tricky to play against. We will be ready and are excited about the challenges ahead and we’ll look forward to the games.
"You have to bear in mind there’s going to be a heat there and at times you can adapt slightly on the tactical side, how you’re approaching certain phases of the game because it’s so hot.
“We’re training in pre-season now in warmer weather and we’re going to Austria in warmer weather so that’ll help us prepare for that.
"There is no doubt in anyone's mind, the staff, players or our supporters, that it is now harder to get to the Champions League."
Celtic faces Rosenborg, the Norwegian champions, last season when a goal from James Forrest was all that separated the sides.
There is ever chance there will be a repeat of that tie and Davies, again, admitted that it would be far from straight-forward.
He said: "There are four rounds now which makes it more difficult but that's how it is.
"We’ve beaten them (Rosenborg) before in probably the hardest way, because we had to play them away second.
"I don’t think their style or their players are going to change too much. We know quite a lot about them, so those are positives but from our point of view it’s all about Alashkert."
The first-leg against the Albanian champions takes place on July 10 or 11, with the return leg is a week later at Celtic Park, on Wednesday July 18, with a 7.45pm kick-off.
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