Stuttgart vs Celtic Europa League preview, team news and prediction

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Stuttgart host Celtic at the MHPArena on Thursday evening for the second leg of their Europa League knockout playoff round tie. Die Roten hold a commanding advantage after a resounding 4-1 victory in the first leg in Scotland, leaving the Bhoys with a mountain to climb if they hope to keep their European campaign alive.

Stuttgart endured a rocky start to their Europa League journey, losing two of their first three league phase matches, with a narrow 2-1 win over Celta Vigo on matchday one their only early success. However, Sebastian Hoeness’s side found their rhythm in the latter stages, winning four and losing just one of their final five league phase fixtures. This late surge propelled them up the standings to 11th place, narrowly missing out on a top-eight finish by a single point.

Drawn against Celtic in the knockout playoff round, Stuttgart entered the tie in impressive form, boasting five wins and just one defeat in their previous six matches across all competitions. Despite the daunting trip to Celtic Park, Hoeness’s men produced a stunning 4-1 win, with goals from Tiago Tomas, Jamie Leweling, and a brace from Bilal El Khannouss.

With such a strong first-leg result, Stuttgart return home firmly in control of the tie, especially given their formidable record at the MHPArena, where they have remained unbeaten since early December 2025. Die Roten have won five and drawn two of their last seven home matches, a remarkable turnaround following a heavy 5-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in December.

While Stuttgart are in a strong position and enjoying a positive run, Celtic arrive for the second leg on the back of consecutive defeats. The Scottish side’s campaign has been plagued by inconsistency, though there were signs of improvement after Martin O’Neill returned for a second spell as manager this term. O’Neill, who previously won seven and lost just one of eight matches between October and December 2025, was reinstated in January following Wilfried Nancy’s troubled tenure.

Upon his return, O’Neill oversaw eight wins and two draws in his first ten games, guiding Celtic into the Europa League knockout rounds and back into the Scottish Premiership title race. However, his first defeat came at the hands of Stuttgart, where Celtic suffered a heavy 4-1 loss.

The Bhoys were unable to recover in their weekend league fixture against Hibernian, conceding an 87th-minute goal to lose 2-1, a result that leaves them six points adrift of league leaders Hearts. Now, Celtic face the daunting task of overturning a three-goal deficit in Germany if they are to progress.

Despite the odds, Celtic will take heart from their five-match unbeaten run away from home prior to this fixture, although they have managed just one away win in European competition this season. The Bhoys will need to summon all their resilience and attacking prowess if they are to stage a remarkable comeback in Stuttgart.

Stuttgart are unsurprisingly the bookies favourite going into this match as the odds-on favourites to win this tie at a best price of 2/5 with Ladbrokes and Sky Bet . Majority of the bookies are going for even shorter odds for the Bundesliga side at 4/11 including Paddy Power , William Hill and bet365 .

For Celtic, the Scottish Premiership champions are best priced at 6/1 to win with SpreadEx , Unibet and Ladbrokes while Sky Bet , Paddy Power and William Hill are all offering 11/2 odds for the side to win away. However, a win will not be enough in this scenario.

A four-goal swing is need and Celtic to win by four goals or more ranges from 80/1 with SpreadEx, 100/1 with Sky Bet and bet365 to 175/1 with Paddy Power . They have never won against a German opposition by such a winning margin however.

Stuttgart are likely to be without Angelo Stiller, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Lazar Jovanovic, and Justin Diehl, who are all sidelined with fitness concerns, while Julian Chabot misses out through suspension. In Chabot’s absence, Luca Jaquez could partner Finn Jeltsch in central defence, with Atakan Karazor and Chema Andres expected to anchor the midfield. Further up the pitch, Chris Fuhrich, Bilal El Khannouss, and Ermedin Demirovic are set to continue in attacking roles, with Deniz Undav also in line to start.

On the other hand, Celtic will be without Alistair Johnston, Arne Engels, Callum Osmand, Cameron Carter-Vickers, and Jota, all of whom are unavailable due to injury. Benjamin Nygren, who has found the net in each of his last three appearances, is expected to start in attack alongside Daizen Maeda, Sebastian Tounekti, and Tomas Cvancara.

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