CELTIC'S lacklustre 0-0 draw with Kazakhstan outfit Kairat Almaty has left fans, players and coaching staff concerned and anxious in equal measure as the second leg looms. A relatively straightforward tie on paper instead turned into another long night of frustration, raising more serious questions about the direction of the team under the current regime.

Celtic fans came into the match quietly confident, as Almaty rank bottom out of every professional team Scottish sides have faced in the qualifying rounds this season. They seemed to offer little threat, with limited resources, a minimal European pedigree and a squad valued at a fraction of the home side's. But how quickly that confidence turned sour. By the half hour mark, chants of “Sack the board” were ringing out from a restless support only too keen to vent the resentment that's been building through yet another underwhelming transfer window.

For now, the board’s gamble on reaching that £40 million Champions League group stage with the existing threadbare and misfiring squad has backfired spectacularly. What was meant to be a comfortable home win followed by key players being rested for the second leg in distant Almaty has turned into a desperate do-or-die one-match battle for Champions League football and – perhaps more importantly – for the hearts and minds of the Celtic faithful.

The increasingly forlorn Adam Idah endured another night to forget. Yes, service to him was limited as Celtic huffed and puffed and struggled to find pace and purpose, but when he did get involved, the big striker’s movement and link-up play were again lacking, leaving him isolated and ineffective. Hooked at half time for Yang, the substitution highlighted not only Idah’s lack of touch and form, but also the woeful lack of options available to coach Brendan Rodgers. With no recognised striker to call upon in the half-time shake-up, Daizen Maeda was forced to shift centrally, a position that does not maximise his qualities.

Yang at least brought sparks of creativity and directness, but it is damning that such flashes stand out when the broader attack remains flat. Benjamin Nygren offered moments of drive, but Celtic’s forward play too often descended into predictability with heavy reliance on wingers cutting inside, crosses blocked and recycled possession that rarely troubled Kairat’s defensive shape.

For their part, the visitors became more emboldened with every passing minute by Celtic's failure to pin them back. They moved the ball about with a confidence and accuracy that Celtic lacked and looked by some distance the more dangerous in the final third. Rodgers’ continued tactical insistence on inverted wingers again proved frustrating. James Forrest and Maeda continually drove inside onto their stronger feet, only to be met by gridlock in the central areas. The pedestrian predictability suffocated the attack and made Celtic easy to defend against.

The second half saw immediate improvement as Yang’s introduction added urgency and Rodgers’ team talk seemed to lift the tempo, but that early spark soon fizzled and went out. Territory and possession were heavily in Celtic’s favour, yet genuine chances remained few and far between. An edge-of-the-box Forrest drive smartly turned on to the post by the keeper and an over-the-bar header from Liam Scales were the dismal pick of the attacking action. 

At the back, problems emerged as well. Alistair Johnston’s hamstring injury was a major blow, with the lively and mobile Canadian right back one of Celtic's few plus points in the half-hour before he pulled up. Concerned fans will be hoping his thumbs-up from the stretcher indicates a minimal lay-off.  Replacement Anthony Ralston is honest and serviceable, but hardly inspiring. On the full-time whistle, with the home team desperately pushing forward in considerably more hope than expectation, Celtic’s full back pairing consisted of Ralston and Liam Scales, a duo that does little to strike fear into European opposition.

Even before that the backline as a whole had looked shaky. Kairat had a goal chalked off and Edmilson came concerningly close to punishing a Carter Vickers lapse in concentration, a mistake reminiscent of his costly Brugge error last season. Carter Vickers' nervy miscontrol on the centre line hinted at a wider fragility.

The deeper problem, however, is squad planning. Celtic have repeatedly failed to replace quality players when they depart. Kyogo Furuhashi’s departure left a gaping hole up front that Idah alone cannot fill. Nicolas Kühn’s energy and intelligence are badly missed and, going further back, Giorgos Giakoumakis’ power and presence were never adequately replaced either. Instead, the board’s approach has been to plug gaps with short term solutions rather than invest in long term quality. For a club of Celtic’s size and ambition, that lack of foresight is proving costly.

Just how wretched a performance this was is best highlighted by the fact that Celtic's best hope for the second leg was handed to them by their opponents. Heading towards the hundredth minute, Kairat's Chelsea-bound wonderkid/star player/talisman Dastan Satpayev failed to retreat from a midfield free kick and the resultant yellow card rules him out of the decider. It was a hammer blow for the Kazakhs, whose lack of depth and quality remains, notwithstanding Celtic's inability to exploit it. The distraught teenager made no effort to hide his bitter frustration, and while Celtic's relief is more discreet, it is every bit as real.  

There should be no reason for panic – Celtic remain a stronger squad and team than their opponents by some distance. But panic there is, because what should have been a controlled and strategic stroll through a two-game qualifier against a European minnow has suddenly turned into a desperate 90-minute scramble for that all-important European cash – and credibility.

The truth is that last night's stalemate felt less like a blip and more like a symptom of deeper structural failings. And unless those are addressed, Celtic Park on European nights will continue to bring more frustration than celebration.