Celtic took a huge step towards the Champions League group stage with a dominant 3-0 victory over Austrian side Lask in the first leg of their play-off tie at Celtic Park, with summer signing Camilo Durán stealing the show with two brilliant goals.
Benjamin Nygren opened the scoring in the 26th minute, adjusting his body mid-air to volley home from 20 yards after Kieran Tierney's cross was only partially cleared. The Swedish forward has now been directly involved in eight goals in as many appearances this season, either scoring or assisting.
Durán then took over, doubling Celtic's advantage 12 minutes later with a strikingly similar finish - a first-time volley into the same top corner from almost the identical position. The Colombian, who joined from Qarabag in the summer, completed his brace midway through the second half, latching onto a flick from fellow new arrival Kasper Høgh before combining with Nygren and slotting home from inside the box.
The result leaves Martin O'Neill's side in a commanding position ahead of next Tuesday's return leg in Linz, though the Austrian visitors were far from passive. Lask had two efforts ruled out for offside in an entertaining opening period and tested Celtic goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo on several occasions, with Moses Usor and Samuel Adeniran both missing presentable chances.
Speaking after the match, O'Neill was full of praise for his match-winner. "He was exceptional. Really exceptional. He's been fantastic for us since he's arrived at the football club. His goals were terrific, his play was great. His running back, helping full-backs, helping Colby out on a number of occasions. It was just a magnificent performance," the Celtic manager said.
O'Neill went further in comments to TNT Sports, calling Durán's display world-class. "I said to him, I'm not saying he's a world-class player, but that was a world-class performance, in every sense. Not only the goals he scored and taking people on, but getting back," he added.
The Irishman also touched on the value of the deal that brought the 24-year-old to Glasgow for a reported £4.5-5.5m fee. "Whatever we paid for Durán, I think he has paid his ticket by now. I don't think it was an awful lot of money when you consider some of the fees that they're talking about for the Premier League. I think he's a real bargain," O'Neill said, also noting that Høgh had added a physical presence up front that complemented Daizen Maeda's contribution last season.
The emphatic win eased some of the tension around Parkhead following the departure of midfielder Arne Engels to West Ham over the weekend in a big-money move, which forced 22-year-old Mika Baur into his home debut. Celtic have endured painful exits at this stage of Champions League qualifying in each of the last five seasons, most recently against Kairat Almaty, as well as previous defeats to AEK Athens, Cluj, Ferencvaros and Midtjylland.
Despite the scoreline, O'Neill was cautious about the tie being settled, pointing to Lask's quality and bright start to the match. "I thought it was a really tough evening for us, really tough evening. We've won 3-0 and they are a really good side... So we've got our work cut out still, but we've given ourselves a chance," he said, adding that he expected a similarly open contest in the second leg and that keeping a clean sheet had been just as crucial as the goals scored.
Based on reporting from Guardian Football, Independent Football, and BBC Sport.