Storied Red Star host Celtic in Europa opener

Europa League: Red Star Belgrade v Celtic

Venue: Rajko Mitic Stadium, Belgrade Date: Wednesday, 24 September Time: 20:00 BST

Coverage: Listen on BBC Radio Scotland Extra & Sounds, live text commentary on the BBC Sport website & app

29 May 1991 was the date. Bari's Stadio San Nicola on Italy's idyllic southern Adriatic coast was the stage and Yugoslavian giants Crvena Zvezda were the shining stars. The Red Stars.

Captain and goalkeeper of the Belgrade behemoths was Steven Stojanovic, front and centre in the photos as he hoisted the European Cup above his head, surrounded by his team-mates in the wake of their attritional victory over Bernard Tapie's well-funded Marseille in the final.

Both sides had enthralled on their way to the showpiece, which was ultimately decided on penalties. The goal-less game didn't live up to the hype.

"I think it was the most boring final in European Cup history," midfielder Sinisa Mihajlovic said years after the match.

It didn't matter.

They scored all five of their spot-kicks, having had a full season of practice with drawn league matches that campaign being settled by a shootout as well.

At the time, Red Star were the real deal.

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Rangers assistant Walter Smith's blunt two-word warning to then-manager Graeme Souness after returning from a scouting mission to watch them ahead of a second-round clash that season was testament to that.

It seemed they had the world at their feet. The mercurial Robert Prosinecki. The graceful Mihajlovic. The prolific Darko Pancev. The lightning-fast Dragisa Binic.

They were a match for any of the European contenders of the late 1980s and early 90s - AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Sampdoria and Barcelona. It seemed only a question of how many European Cups would come their way.

And then it all stopped. A team broken up by war.

"We will never know how good we could have been," Stojanovic famously said as he looked back on dark days replacing the glory days.

Civil war erupted with Yugoslavia torn apart and Red Star's many internationals denied the chance to challenge at the European Championship at the end of the following season after the country was thrown out of the tournament in Sweden.

Romanian Miodrag Belodedici, who became the first man to win the European Cup twice with two different clubs having been part of the Steaua Bucharest team that won it in 1986, maintains they would have "gone on winning for years" had the team not been forced apart.

No eastern European side has won it since, with the region left wondering what might have been.

Katai & Arnautovic present dangers

Indeed, Red Star had only two appearances in the Uefa Cup group stage to dine on across 20 years from 1995 after sanctions prevented Yugoslav clubs from entering European competition.

In recent years, the Serbian champions have begun to find their feet again with four Champions League appearances over the last seven seasons.

However, like Europa League match-day one foes Celtic, they were stunned by unfancied opponents in the play-offs for Uefa's premier tournament as Cypriots Pafos ended Red Star's hopes of a third successive campaign at the top table.

Brendan Rodgers will lead his Celtic side into one of the most intimidating arenas in Europe when they enter the imposing Rajko Mitic Stadium.

The hosts' failure to get into the Champions League was caused, in part, by selling a lot of the family silver in the summer as they brought in more than £40m, including the sales of 18-year-old pair Velijko Milosavlejvic to Bournemouth and Andrija Maksimovic to RB Leipzig.

However, there remains plenty for Celtic to concern themselves with.

None more so than veteran Aleksandar Katai, who has already amassed 12 goals in 13 games from midfield having scored 19 last term as they racked up an eighth successive Serbian title.

On Saturday evening, as they defeated neighbours and bitter rivals Partizan in the 'Eternal Derby', Katai formed part of an attacking four with highly-rated 17-year-old Vasilije Kostov, Montenegro international Mirko Ivanic, who has seven goals himself this term, and former West Ham United and Stoke City striker Marko Arnautovic.

The latter arrived at the club in the summer amid a sea of emotion having promised his former Bolonga head coach and Red Star great Mihajlovic that he would sign for the club before the end of his career.

Mihajlovic died of leukaemia in 2022 and Austrian Arnautovic was in tears at his own unveiling as he regaled the story as it came true.

For Celtic, this will be another major test of their poor away European form as they look to start their Europa League campaign in a positive manner and taking on a side that has, incredibly, lost just five league games in the past five seasons.

It is also a club that is desperate to shine brightly on the continental stage once more.