Shaun Maloney has admitted Celtic are still trying to find the right midfield structure for Europe ahead of Thursday night’s clash with Celta Vigo.

Celtic go into the game needing points after losing their opening two Europa League fixtures against Ferencvaros and Benfica.

The 7-1 win over Hearts gave the squad a lift, but Celta Vigo will bring a very different test at Celtic Park.

All the upcoming Celtic fixtures are on our fixtures page.

Mika Baur has also been growing into games domestically, with Callum McGregor still central to how Celtic control the ball.

But Maloney says the issue is not simply about which three players start in midfield. It is about how Celtic set up around them.

Asked whether Celtic are still working out the right midfield balance for European games, Maloney said: (Celtic FC YouTube), “Not so much the individuals, I’d say just the structure that we put them in. I think that’s something we’ve been trying to figure out all season. At times, we get it right, it looks really good, and then there’s been certain matches away from home in Europe that it’s looked harder.

“We have to figure that out and we have to do that pretty quickly into tomorrow because the way that Celta play is a really open midfield. We want to limit that as much as we can.”

But Europe has exposed Celtic when the midfield and front line have not worked together without the ball.

Maloney made it clear that responsibility does not sit with the midfield three alone.

He added: “It’s not always on the midfield. I think the players ahead of them have to be part of that. It’s not just the midfield three, it’s the guys in front of them as well that have a big say on how that looks.

“You’ve heard me say it a few times, we have to be committed, everyone. When we do, we’ve shown we can beat some pretty good sides in Europe.”

That will be the demand against Celta Vigo.

Celtic cannot allow the game to become stretched in the way Benfica did early on in Lisbon. If Celta are given space to play through midfield, Celtic’s back line will be asked to defend too much open grass.

The Hearts result showed what Celtic can do when the press works and the attacking players run beyond the ball.

Thursday will show whether that same balance can hold up in Europe.