Following last Wednesday’s goalless draw in Glasgow, I think another low-scoring affair could be in store when Kairat Almaty and Celtic reconvene this week.

Kairat have proven to be a tough nut to crack throughout their qualifying campaign, particularly on home soil. Not only have Rafael Urazbakhtin’s side won each of their previous three qualifiers at home, but each of those three contests featured Under 3.5 Goals. In fact, two of those three matches produced Under 2.5 strikes, and that has also been the case in each of Kairat’s four continental contests away from home this term.

As for Celtic, each of their opening three Scottish Premiership matches of the season have delivered three match goals or fewer. Brendan Rodgers’ side have looked fairly solid at the back this season, but they have yet to hit top gear in attack, so it’s difficult to envisage this second leg escalating into a high-scoring shootout.

It was clear to see during last week’s first leg that gamesmanship and the dark arts are part of Kairt Almaty's repertoire. I’m fully expecting to see more of that from the hosts this midweek, given that they are now just one win away from qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in their history.

As such, I’m prepared to back Kairat to collect a minimum of three cards on Tuesday evening. The Kazakh outfit were shown exactly three yellow cards during last week’s first leg and I would expect a repeat - if not more - during this week’s make-or-break return match. 

Kairat clocked up three yellow cards during the first leg of their 3rd round qualifier with Slovan Bratislava, while they racked up no fewer than five cautions when hosting Finish outfit KuPS in the previous round. What’s more, Urazbakhtin’s hosts also covered the 3+ cards line during their first round qualifier with Slovenian minnows Olimpija Ljubljana.

Even though they are away from home this week, I would expect Celtic to enjoy the majority of possession again here, so much so that I’m happy to support them to earn at least six corners.

Celtic are a team that consistently rack up high corner kick counts, with Brendan Rodgers’ side finishing last week’s first leg with a flag-kick total of 15. In their two home games prior to that, the Hoops hit 12 corners against St Mirren and then 16 against Falkirk. Since last week’s first leg with Kairat, the Glasgow giants have since played host to Livingston in the Scottish Premiership, delivering another double digit team corner total (10) on that occasion. 

Kairat Almaty’s ability to sit deep and frustrate should again prove to be a difficult tactic for Celtic to counter, but that should coincide with the visitors winning plenty of corner kicks, with a minimum of six well within range.

I backed Dan Glazer to be carded during last week’s first leg and I’m keen to side with the Kairat Almaty man to tackle his way into trouble again here. It only took Glazer 31 minutes to have his name taken last week, meaning that he has now clocked up four cards across his six appearances for Kairat in this season’s Champions League qualifiers. 

That heavy card return meant that Glazer had to serve a one match suspension when  Kairat played host to KuPS in the second round of qualifiers.

The Israel international has also been a frequent offender on the domestic scene this season, collecting four yellow cards and one red card across his 13 outings in the Kazakhstan Premier League. Glazer is likely to be in a direct battle with Callum McGregor on Tuesday evening, with the Celtic skipper earning his side two free-kicks during last week’s first leg.

Valeri Gromyko looks like another prime candidate to pick up a card during this week’s do-or-die second leg. Like the aforementioned Glazer, Gromyko has also been a battle-hardened warrior throughout this qualifying campaign, collecting a combined total of three yellow cards across his seven appearances to date.  

The 28-year-old has also been no stranger to the referee’s notebook in the Kazakhstan top-flight this term, having amassed five yellow cards and one red card across his 18 outings thus far. On top of that, Gromyko has also collected a couple of cautions across his three domestic cup appearances for Kairat this season. 

There is plenty of scope for the Belarusian midfielder to pick up another booking here, especially in a game of this magnitude. Gromyko is likely to be operating in the same areas of the field as marauding Celtic full-back Kieran Tierney, who was fouled on two separate occasions at Celtic Park.

I saw enough from Kairat Almaty in last week’s first leg to make them worthy of support as a Double Chance selection on Tuesday evening. I couldn’t help but be impressed by just how well-drilled and meticulously organised Rafael Urazbakhtin’s side were at Celtic Park.

Kairat should prove to be an even tougher proposition in front of their own supporters, not to mention they can also draw confidence from their strong home record this season. The Kazakh champions have won the home legs of each of their previous three home games during Champions League qualification, the most recent of which saw them defeat Slovan Bratislava. That trio of victories is made all the more impressive by the fact that Kairat managed to keep a clean sheet on each occasion.

Celtic have long had a reputation for being a side that struggles on their European travels, and given that they are not playing at their free-flowing best, I’m more than happy to keep the hosts onside on Tuesday evening.