Celtic vs Leipzig facts

Celtic will once again look to capitalise on home advantage as they face Leipzig in Glasgow on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Champions League.

The Scottish title holders kicked off with a 5-1 win at Celtic Park against debutants Slovan Bratislava but then went down 7-1 at Borussia Dortmund, although they steadied the ship with a 0-0 draw at UEFA Europa League winners Atalanta last time out.

Leipzig are one of six clubs still looking for their first points after three matches, losing 2-1 at Atlético de Madrid and at home to both Juventus (2-3) and Liverpool (0-1).

Previous meetings

Matches 4
Celtic wins 1
Leipzig wins 3
Draws 0
Celtic goals 3
Leipzig goals 8

2018/19 UEFA Europa League group stage
Leipzig 2-0 Celtic
Celtic 2-1 Leipzig
Goals from Matheus Cunha and Bruma earned Leipzig victory in Germany but Celtic turned the tables in Glasgow. Kieran Tierney gave them an 11th-minute lead, Jean-Kévin Augustin levelled with 12 minutes left, but 60 seconds later Celtic's Odsonne Édouard struck the winner.

2022/23 UEFA Champions League group stage
Leipzig 3-1 Celtic
Celtic 0-2 Leipzig
Christopher Nkunku's fine opener in Germany was cancelled out by Jota but two goals in the final half-hour from André Silva (64, 77) gave Leipzig the points.

Leipzig left it late to take the points at Celtic Park a week later, Timo Werner and substitute Emil Forsberg striking in the closing stages.

Form guide

Celtic

Record vs German clubs: W4 D5 L20 F21 A52
Home record vs German clubs: W4 D2 L8

Celtic's 7-1 loss at Dortmund on Matchday 2 made it five successive defeats against Bundesliga opponents, with four goals scored and 19 conceded.

The win against Leipzig in November 2018 is Celtic's only victory in their last 16 games against German opponents (D3 L12) and the only one of the last nine they have not lost.

At home, the Hoops have lost five of the last six, most recently that 2022 defeat by Leipzig.

Celtic are in the Champions League proper for the 13th time, two more than local rivals Rangers, and the third season in a row.

The Hoops were bottom of their section for the second season running – and the fourth time in their last five campaigns – in 2023/24, although they ended with a 2-1 home win against Feyenoord – their first Champions League victory at Celtic Park since 2013.

That ended Celtic's run of 12 home group games without a win (D3 L9), since beating Ajax 2-1 on Matchday 4 in 2013/14. This season's Matchday 1 defeat of Slovan made it successive home victories; Celtic have not won three in a row since 2007.

Home and away, Celtic have won four of their last 35 games in the Champions League proper (D7 L24).

The first British club to win the European Cup in 1967, and runners-up to Feyenoord three years later, Celtic have reached the knockout stages three times. All those campaigns ended in the round of 16, most recently in 2012/13 against Juventus (0-3 h, 0-2 a).

Celtic claimed their 54th Scottish League title, and a 12th in 13 seasons, in 2023/24, Brendan Rodgers' side also winning the Scottish Cup, the Hoops' record 42nd victory.

Leipzig

Record vs Scottish clubs: W4 D0 L2 F10 A6
Away record vs Scottish clubs: W1 D0 L2

Their four matches against Celtic aside, Leipzig's only other experience of Scottish opposition came in the 2021/22 Europa League semi-finals, when they beat Rangers 1-0 in the home first leg but lost 3-1 in Glasgow to bow out.

This is Leipzig's seventh campaign in the Champions League, all since 2017/18, and a sixth in a row.

Semi-finalists in 2019/20, losing a one-off tie 3-0 to Paris Saint-Germain, the German club have reached the knockout rounds in four of their last five campaigns, including 2023/24.

Last season Marco Rose's side finished second in Group G behind Manchester City, winning four of their six games and losing both to the holders, before being edged out by eventual champions Real Madrid in the round of16 (0-1 h, 1-1 a).

Leipzig's away European record is W13 D6 L15, with seven wins and six defeats in the last 14.

This is only Leipzig's eighth season of European football. They became the first club to make their continental debut in the Champions League group stage in September 2017 and were also Europa League semi-finalists in 2021/22.

Rose's charges were fourth in the Bundesliga in 2023/24, Leipzig's sixth successive top-four finish and a sixth in seven years since being promoted to the German top flight for the first time in 2016.

Links and trivia

Have played together:
Arne Engels & Antonio Nusa (Club NXT Brugge 2022)

International team-mates:
Kasper Schmeichel & Yussuf Poulsen (Denmark)
Arne Engels & Maarten Vandevoordt, Loïs Openda (Belgium)

Latest news

Celtic

On Saturday the Hoops reached the Scottish League Cup final with a 6-0 semi-final victory against Aberdeen, Daizen Maeda scoring a hat-trick.

Celtic have won nine of their ten Premier League games this season, the exception a 2-2 draw at home against Aberdeen on 19 October in a game they had led 2-0.

The Glasgow club have not conceded in their last four games in all competitions, following the draw at Atalanta with league victories at Motherwell (3-0) and at home to Dundee (2-0).

The Hoops have kept 12 clean sheets in 19 matches stretching back to last season.

The Matchday 2 defeat at Dortmund is Celtic's only reverse in 24 games in all competitions (W19 D4), since a 2-0 defeat at Hearts on 3 March.

Adam Idah missed the win against Dundee with a foot injury suffered at Motherwell but returned as a substitute on Saturday.

Callum McGregor started on Saturday having been kept out since Matchday 3 by an adductor injury.

Nicolas Kühn missed the Dundee win with a sore hip but also started on Saturday.

Leipzig

Leipzig's unbeaten start to the Bundesliga season was ended by a 2-1 loss at Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, Benjamin Šeško having given them the lead.

That ended Leipzig's 19-game unbeaten Bundesliga run (W13 D6), surpassing the club record set in 2018/19, and were undefeated in ten away league games, eclipsing the previous best of nine from 2020.

Leipzig had collected 20 points from their first eight Bundesliga games, a new club record. They have conceded only five goals in total.

On 29 October Leipzig reached the last 16 of the German Cup with a 4-2 win against St. Pauli. Yussuf Poulsen scored twice, his first club goals this season.

Péter Gulácsi did not concede in the Bundesliga for 510 minutes between 31 August and 26 October, a new Leipzig record.

Xavi Simons has been out since Matchday 3 due to an ankle injury.

Nicolas Seiwald (out since 13 October, adductors) and David Raum (6 October, ankle) have also been sidelined.

On 23 October Leipzig announced that Castello Lukeba has signed a contract extension until 2029.