Celtic are set to travel to Denmark on Thursday evening for the first leg of their last-32 Europa League encounter with FC Copenhagen.
The hosts returned from their winter break on Friday with a 1-0 defeat away at Esbjerg as the title-chasing outfit struggled for creativity in the absence of Viktor Fischer.
The former Ajax ace has been in outstanding form for the Danish outfit this season, providing two goals and an eye-catching nine assists in the Superligaen.
But the Hoops will fortunately be spared of the task of preventing Fischer from weaving and conspiring at the Telia Parken Stadium on Thursday.
The 25-year-old has been officially ruled out for a few weeks after injuring himself at Copenhagen’s training camp in Portugal earlier this month.
While neutrals and Copenhagen supporters will naturally be disappointed by the playmaker’s absence, Celtic are likely to view the setback through a starkly contrasting lens.
It’s a huge boost for the Hoops as they bid to finally make a significant impact on the European stage this season, and it’s one which could have a knock on effect on veteran striker Dame N’Doye.
The 34-year-old striker is something of a legend at the club, having scored a whopping 115 goals in 213 appearances across all competitions which span over a 12 year period.
He started in a front-two with Michael Santos on Friday and is likely to lead the line once again this week, but the absence of Fischer is telling.
In the 47 games the two players have played alongside each other, they have combined to goal scoring effect on 14 occasions. That Fischer has teed up Copenhagen’s relentless goal machine in 11 of those instances underlines the effectiveness of their understanding in the final third.
Without his partner in crime, N’Doye may lack the spark in midfield which he needs to carve out clear cut opportunities in front of Fraser Forster’s goal.
To put things into perspective, Inter Milan’s Christian Eriksen, who Fischer has played alongside with at Ajax and also for the Denmark national side, has combined with Copenhagen’s star six times – the second highest number of joint goal participations after N’Doye.
This is undoubtedly a huge blow for Copenhagen on a collective level, but for their star striker it’s particularly troublesome as the Scottish giants bid to make a big statement in Scandinavia.
