MISSING PASSPORT THEN MISSING TEAM

Sorry Celts still flight risk as Danes dish out doing

- MICHAEL GANNON AT MCH ARENA

MARTIN O'NEILL had to make a mad dash back to his home down south to fetch his passport for Denmark.

But the stand-in boss must have wondered why he bothered after his Celtic charges failed to turn up against Midtjylland.

O'Neill still has sleepless nights thinking about the UEFA Cup Final defeat to Porto in 2003.

This one could give him a few new nightmares as Celtic’s severe squad limitations were cruelly exposed by the deadly Danes.

Hoops fans celebrated their club’s 138th anniversary with an old school banner before kickoff.

But Midtjylland were proper party poopers as they dished out a birthday bashing to make it four wins out of four in the Europa League.

The writing was on the wall from the off as the form team in the tourney made mincemeat of O'Neill's men. Two goals in two first-half minutes did much of the damage and a third before the break left the Hoops in a heap.

Reo Hatate slotted a late penalty after fellow sub Callum Osmand was tripped but the clash was done and dusted around 60 minutes earlier.

Yet even that minor moment of joy was short-lived when Hampden League Cup hero Osmand had to be stretchered off before the end.

It was a bitter blow on a night full of them. Celtic’s backline was creaking before it fully cracked.

Wideman Mikel Gogorza was posing major problems and he got in behind to tee up former Bournemouth midfielder Philip Billing to nod in the first, then bagged the second himself when he darted in off the left flank.