First Match The Toughest For Gordon

Photo by Jeff Holmes Craig Gordon believes Celtic's most difficult Europa League Group D game will come in the opener against Salzburg in Austria on Thursday night. The home side lost for the third successive time at the weekend with a 1-0 defeat at Wolfsberger but are top seeds in the Hoops' group, which also includes Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb and Romanian outfit FC Astra. Speaking before training at the Salzburg stadion, the 31-year-old Hoops goalkeeper spoke about "getting the hardest game out the way first, although all away games can cause more problems than home ones." "They are a great team," he said. "They press high up the pitch then try to force teams into mistakes. "They have done very well in their domestic league in recent years so we know we are in for a big fight and a very difficult match. "But we're here to get points on the board and get off to a good start in the competition. "We have to be solid and concentrate on what we do well and we will have to defend very well." Celtic defender Jason Denayer has spoken about the Parkhead men going all the way to the final but the more experienced former Hearts and Sunderland number one, who helped Celtic end a four-game winless run with a 2-1 home Premiership victory over Aberdeen on Saturday, wants to negotiate the tournament on a game-by-game basis. "It is possible for us to win it but it's an awful long way from that at the moment," he said. "We have to concentrate on getting out of the group first, then you have to deal with teams coming out of the Champions League making it a difficult competition from there on in. "You have to be lucky with the draw to get to that stage but as a club and squad we are big enough to take that challenge on. "To win any European competition you are going to have to win difficult games against quality opposition. "I'd love to go on and do that but we are a long way away from that."