Celtic Park erupted as Celtic secured their place in the Europa League play-off round with a 4-2 victory over FC Utrecht on Thursday night. The Scottish Premiership champions showcased a blistering start, surging to a 3-0 lead within the first 19 minutes, before withstanding a spirited comeback attempt from the Dutch side.

Martin O'Neill's men came into the final match of the league phase knowing that a victory would likely be needed to secure a spot in the play-off. The Hoops delivered a dream start in front of their home fans, with Benjamin Nygren opening the scoring in the 6th minute. A short corner routine between Colby Donovan and Callum McGregor led to Kieran Tierney delivering a low cross for Nygren to tap in from close range.

Just four minutes later, Celtic doubled their advantage, this time through a Nick Viergever own goal. Nygren intercepted a poor pass from Utrecht goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas and his cross was inadvertently deflected into the net by Viergever, as Daizen Maeda looked to pounce.

Celtic extended their lead in the 19th minute when they were awarded a penalty after Auston Trusty's header struck Dani de Wit's arm. Arne Engels stepped up and confidently dispatched the penalty, making it 3-0. The lightning-fast start marked Celtic's earliest-ever three-goal lead in a major European game.

Utrecht, however, refused to succumb easily. Just before halftime, Dani de Wit reduced the deficit with a well-placed curling shot into the bottom corner. The visitors further increased the tension at Celtic Park when Adrian Blake finished off a counter-attack with a curling effort past Kasper Schmeichel in the 62nd minute, narrowing the score to 3-2.

But Celtic responded swiftly to quell any comeback hopes. Four minutes later, Auston Trusty powerfully headed home from an Engels' corner, restoring Celtic's two-goal cushion. Despite late pressure and chances for both sides, Celtic held on to secure the 4-2 victory.

The win sees Celtic finish the group stage in a Europa League play-off spot. They now face a two-legged tie against either Stuttgart or Ferencvaros in February. Martin O'Neill celebrated the victory, marking his first home European game as Celtic manager for over 20 years. While acknowledging the need for improvement, O'Neill expressed his delight in guiding Celtic to the next stage of the competition.