Celtic vs Kairat Prediction and Betting Tips

Celtic and Kairat Almaty will trade tackles in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League playoff tie on Wednesday (August 20th). The game will be played at Celtic Park.

The home side are coming into the game on the back of a 4-1 thrashing of Falkirk in a Scottish League Cup round-of-16 tie over the weekend. They went into the break in the lead thanks to Daizen Maeda's 26th-minute strike. Alistair Johnston and Dane Murray scored a goal each in the second half, while Liam Henderson scored an own goal. Keelan Adams pulled one back for the visitors.

Kairat, meanwhile, let a two-goal lead slip in a 3-2 defeat at home to Yelimay Semey in the Kazakhstan Premier League. They went two goals up through Edmilson Santos' brace, while Ofri Arad's own goal halved the deficit. Fessou Placca scored a second-half brace for the visitors to complete the turnaround.

The Almaty outfit will turn their focus to the continent and booked their spot at this stage with a penalty shootout victory over Slovan Bratislava in the last round. Celtic received a bye to this stage. The winner of this tie will book their spot in the UEFA Champions League main stage while the losers will drop to the UEFA Europa League.

Celtic vs Kairat Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

This will be the first meeting between the two sides.
Kairat are winless in their last seven away games in European competition (five losses).
Celtic have competed in the main stage of the UEFA Champions League in each of the last three seasons.
Kairat are competing at this stage of the UCL qualifiers for the first time in their history.
Eight of Celtic's last nine home games in European competitions have witnessed goals at both ends.

Celtic vs Kairat Prediction

Celtic have made a three-game winning start to the season across all competitions. Brendan Rodgers' side are the favorites to keep this run going and will be keen to register a healthy lead ahead of their trip to Kazakhstan next week.

Kairat are newbies at this stage, but can draw inspiration from eliminating Slovan Bratislava in the last round despite also being the underdogs.

We are backing the home side to claim a comfortable victory with goals at both ends.

Prediction: Celtic 3-1 Kairat

Celtic vs Kairat Betting Tips

Tip 1 - Celtic to win

Tip 2 - Both teams to score

Tip 3 - Over 2.5 goals

About the author

Elvis is a seasoned football journalist and has been with Sportskeeda for more than 6 years. He specializes in writing match previews across several leagues and competitions around the world, and his insightful tips have amassed a total readership in excess of 9.2 million till date. Elvis' meticulous attention to detail and strictly following SK's editorial guidelines have been key to achieving a vast readership. He has also exclusively covered the 2021 Nigerian Universiy Games and has provided research for an upcoming biography for a Nigerian football legend.

Elvis has been a Super Eagles fan since 2004, and them beating defending champions Cameroon in the AFCON that year left a lasting impact on him. He supports Sporting Lagos at club level and loves to watch games live at the Onikan Stadium due to its buzzing atmosphere. His favorite football players are former Nigerian forward, Osaze Odemwingie and former Real Madrid legend Raul Gonzalez.

If Elvis could change one football rule, it would be to not be booked for celebrating with pitch side fans. He believes that football is a passionate game and celebrations should be encouraged to the fullest. When not analyzing the latest previews, Elvis indulges in activities such as swimming, reading, and karaoke.

Know More

Edited by Peter P

Celtic vs Kairat Prediction and Betting Tips | August 20th 2025

Celtic vs Kairat Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

Celtic vs Kairat Prediction

Celtic vs Kairat Betting Tips