THE BLOCKS IN CELTIC WAY TO £40M

Hoops await fate in draw, with Swiss trip or Kazakhstan trek among trickiest tests

- RYAN MCDONALD

CELTIC will discover who stands between them and a bumper £40million Champions League jackpot when the play-off draw is made on Monday.

Brendan Rodgers' men are seeded in the final qualifying round and will face one of five possible opponents in the Champions Path.

Two teams are already in the hat, while three third-round ties have still to be settled before the picture becomes clearer - with Slovan Bratislava taking on Kairat, Dynamo Kiev facing Pafos and Qarabag being tested by Shkendija.

It's a winner-takes-all two-legged shootout for a golden ticket to the group stages as Celts look to dine at Europe's top table for a fourth year on the bounce.

Here, Record Sport gives the lowdown on who the Parkhead giants could face in the most lucrative showdown of the season.

FC Basel (Switzerland)

Arguably the toughest draw on paper. Basel finished top of the Swiss Super League as they took title back from Young Boys - who Celtic narrowly edged out in last year's group phase.

Hoops supporters of a certain vintage will shudder at the memory of Basel dumping Martin O'Neill's star-studded side out back in 2002. Of course, Henrik Larsson and Co bounced back with an unforgettable run to the UEFA Cup Final in Seville. But, 23 years on, it still represents a difficult tie.

Last season was their first without European football in a quarter of a century, but they haven't reached the Champions League proper since 2017/18, when Manchester City beat them in the last 16.