Celtic now have their work cut out if they want to secure progression into the play-off stages of the Europa League.

It wasn’t so long ago that Celtic weren’t far off from returning to the Champions League, only to collapse in Austria against LASK, and it has been downhill since then in Europe.

Celtic have suffered three Europa League defeats on the bounce, including against Spanish side Celta Vigo on Thursday evening at Parkhead.

Chris Sutton is prone to a bit of sarcasm, and you can’t tell if he is expressing that on social media, but he has claimed that he was ‘surprised’ by Celtic’s 2-1 defeat to Celta Vigo.

Three games and three defeats for Celtic in the Europa League after a 2-1 loss vs Celta Vigo. What is going wrong for the Hoops?

No side has ever qualified for the KO stages of the competition after losing their first three games in the league phase…

What did Chris Sutton say after Celtic lost again in Europe?

It was a dull opening 45 minutes, with very little goalmouth action, and both sides giving away possession on several occasions.

But at the start of the second half, Mika Baur opened the scoring after a dangerous ball from the right flank by Haissem Hassan.

After that, the Spanish side pushed Celtic back, Martin O’Neill was too late with his subs, and the away team were leading 2-1.

Either way, Sutton seemingly expected a different outcome before a ball was kicked, as the Hoops now have their work cut out.

‘I’d like to say tonight’s result was a surprise…’ wrote Sutton on social media.

Normality continues for Celtic in Europe…

This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Whether it’s Brendan Rodgers in the dugout or O’Neill in 2026. Celtic are no longer the team they once were in Europe.

When O’Neill first took charge after the turn of the century, he turned the Hoops into a very competitive team in Europe.

Now it’s just pure embarrassment, and the saddest thing about it all is that there is no sign that the decline will stop.