News

It turns out that hideous night in Switzerland was nothing more than a figment of our collective imagination: Celtic are back in the Europa League.

Uefa handed them a comfortable 3-0 win over FC Sion, which was actually reflective of actual events on the night – in a polar opposite sort of way.

Sion have been thrown out of the competition for breaching the terms of a transfer ban, with several players featuring in the 3-1 aggregate victory over Celtic who were effectively ineligible.

When the celebrations in one half of Glasgow die down, however, they may well give way to some sense of foreboding.

Celtic now take their place in Group I, in which they will take on Atletico Madrid, Udinese and Rennes, so there could be a few more difficult nights ahead for Neil Lennon’s not-so-merry band of men.

A Celtic spokesman, presumably ruddy-faced-with-excitement-or-something-stronger, said: "We have been advised by UEFA that the two protests relating to the matches against FC Sion have been upheld, as a result of which each match has been forfeited in favour of Celtic.

“We are pleased by this decision, the approach which has been taken by UEFA and the fact that UEFA rules and regulations have been upheld. We are also grateful for the support of the SFA in this matter.”