Celtic vs VfB Stuttgart prediction 19.02.2026 | Europa League
Celtic
Kick off:
Date:
Stuttgart
1
3.50
X
3.68
2
2.19
Contents
- Competition: Europa League
- Date: 19/02/2026
- KO: 20:00 UK / 21:00 CET
- Venue: Parkhead
A crucial UEL contest takes place in Glasgow on Thursday evening as Scottish champions Celtic take on Bundesliga visitors VfB Stuttgart.
Both sides head into this Europa League play-off in confident mood, with Celtic snatching a dramatic Premiership win over Kilmarnock and Stuttgart grinding out a 3:1 Bundesliga victory against Köln.
Set to face each other for the first time, an absorbing contest looks likely, and with both teams in goalscoring form, an entertaining evening should be on the cards at a packed Parkhead.
Celtic team overview
Celtic switch their focus back to Europa League duties after a thrilling 3:2 comeback win against Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership last weekend. Trailing by two goals at the break, a 97th-minute winner from Julian Araujo capped a stunning turnaround from the Hoops.
Since their January defeat to Rangers, the Scottish champions have gone ten games unbeaten, collecting seven victories during that run. Much improved in the attacking areas, Celtic averaged 2.4 goals per game over that stretch, while they scored an impressive 4:2 win against Utrecht in their most recent Europa League game.
High-scoring outcomes have been frequent for the home side. Six of their last seven matches finished with both teams scoring and a minimum of three goals scored.
Martin O’Neill is unable to call on five players this week. Alistair Johnston, Arne Engels, Callum Osmand, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Jota remain sidelined.
Last matches of Celtic
-
Kilmarnock
2 : 3
Celtic
Premiership
-
Celtic
2 : 1
Livingston
Premiership
-
Celtic
1 : 0
Dundee
Scottish Cup
-
Celtic
2 : 0
Falkirk
Premiership
-
Celtic
4 : 2
Utrecht
Europa League
Celtic lineup
Goalkeeper
-
1
Kasper Schmeichel
Defenders
-
22
Julian Araujo
-
6
Auston Trusty
-
5
Liam Scales
-
63
Kieran Tierney
Midfielders
-
8
Benjamin Nygren
-
21
A. Oxlade-Chamberlain
-
42
Callum McGregor
Forwards
-
23
Sebastian Tounekti
-
11
Tomas Cvancara
-
38
Daizen Maeda
VfB Stuttgart team overview
Stuttgart head to Glasgow buoyed by a convincing 3:1 Bundesliga victory over Köln last weekend. Late strikes from Ermedin Demirović and Deniz Undav wrapped up the points at the MHP Arena.
Sebastian Hoeneß’s side have been in strong scoring form in recent weeks, winning five of their last six matches in all competitions. Stuttgart hit exactly three goals in four of those five victories.
In Europe, VfB narrowly missed automatic qualification despite winning four of their five Europa League matches. A 3:2 win against Young Boys on the final matchday secured 10th place, with five wins from eight games and an average of three goals per match scored in those fixtures.
Head coach Hoeneß has five expected absentees this week. Luca Jaquez, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Lazar Jovanovic, Nikolas Nartey and Justin Diehl are expected to remain sidelined.
Last matches of Stuttgart
-
Stuttgart
3 : 1
FC Koln
Bundesliga
-
St Pauli
2 : 1
Stuttgart
Bundesliga
-
Holstein Kiel
0 : 3
Stuttgart
DFB Pokal
-
Stuttgart
1 : 0
SC Freiburg
Bundesliga
-
Stuttgart
3 : 2
Young Boys
Europa League
Stuttgart lineup
Goalkeeper
-
33
Alexander Nuebel
Defenders
-
22
Lorenz Assignon
-
29
Finn Jeltsch
-
24
Jeff Chabot
-
7
M. Mittelstaedt
Midfielders
-
16
Atakan Karazor
-
30
Chema Andres
-
18
Jamie Leweling
-
26
Deniz Undav
-
10
Chris Fuehrich
Forwards
-
9
Ermedin Demirovic
Prediction
Goals should be expected at Parkhead, with both teams scoring plenty since the turn of the year. BTTS is my best bet, while we should see at least three goals scored at Parkhead.
Three Reasons Why We Expect BTTS
- Celtic have seen BTTS in 6 of their last 7 matches
- Celtic have seen BTTS in 6 of their last 7 Europa League matches
- Stuttgart have seen BTTS in 7 of their last 11 matches
Main prediction Celtic - Stuttgart
Both Teams to Score
Best Odds:
Megapari
1.61
Celtic vs Stuttgart standings in Europa League
| League Stage | P | W | D | L |
G - A
|
GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Olympique Lyonnais | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 18 - 5 | +13 | 21 |
| 2 | Aston Villa | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 14 - 6 | +8 | 21 |
| 3 | FC Midtjylland | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 18 - 8 | +10 | 19 |
| 4 | Real Betis | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 13 - 7 | +6 | 17 |
| 5 | Porto | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 13 - 7 | +6 | 17 |
| 6 | Sporting Braga | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 - 5 | +6 | 17 |
| 7 | SC Freiburg | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 10 - 4 | +6 | 17 |
| 8 | Roma | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 13 - 6 | +7 | 16 |
| 9 | Genk | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 11 - 7 | +4 | 16 |
| 10 | Bologna | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 14 - 7 | +7 | 15 |
| 11 | VfB Stuttgart | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 15 - 9 | +6 | 15 |
| 12 | Ferencvárosi | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 12 - 11 | +1 | 15 |
| 13 | Nottingham Forest | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 15 - 7 | +8 | 14 |
| 14 | Viktoria Plzeň | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 8 - 3 | +5 | 14 |
| 15 | Crvena Zvezda | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 7 - 6 | +1 | 14 |
| 16 | Celta de Vigo | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 15 - 11 | +4 | 13 |
| 17 | PAOK | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 17 - 14 | +3 | 12 |
| 18 | LOSC Lille | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 12 - 9 | +3 | 12 |
| 19 | Fenerbahçe | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 - 7 | +3 | 12 |
| 20 | Panathinaikos | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 11 - 9 | +2 | 12 |
| 21 | Celtic | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 13 - 15 | -2 | 11 |
| 22 | Ludogorets | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 12 - 15 | -3 | 10 |
| 23 | Dinamo Zagreb | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 12 - 16 | -4 | 10 |
| 24 | Brann | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 9 - 11 | -2 | 9 |
| 25 | Young Boys | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 10 - 16 | -6 | 9 |
| 26 | Sturm Graz | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 5 - 11 | -6 | 7 |
| 27 | FCSB | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 9 - 16 | -7 | 7 |
| 28 | Go Ahead Eagles | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 6 - 14 | -8 | 7 |
| 29 | Feyenoord | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 11 - 15 | -4 | 6 |
| 30 | Basel | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 9 - 13 | -4 | 6 |
| 31 | Salzburg | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 10 - 15 | -5 | 6 |
| 32 | Rangers | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 - 14 | -9 | 4 |
| 33 | Nice | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 7 - 15 | -8 | 3 |
| 34 | FC Utrecht | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 5 - 15 | -10 | 1 |
| 35 | Malmö FF | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 - 15 | -11 | 1 |
| 36 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 - 22 | -20 | 1 |