Celta bid to kindle European dreams at Balaidos

It took an extra-time goal from Gustavo Cabral in Kharkiv to sink FC Shakhtar Donetsk and keep RC Celta's UEFA Europa League hopes alive. Buoyed by that hard-fought triumph, Eduardo Berizzo's men will be looking to take another step towards a dream European conquest when they welcome Russian side FC Krasnodar to Balaidos for the first leg of their last-16 tie on Thursday night.

Argentinian coach Berizzo will have an almost full-strength squad to choose from, with injured goalkeeper Ruben Blanco and midfielder Pablo Hernandez his only absentees, and will expect a packed crowd to spur on his charges. Their immediate goal is to match the club's best showing in the competition, which dates back to 1999-2001, when they reached the quarter-finals in three consecutive seasons.

Berizzo underscored the high spirits and sense of anticipation in the Celestes camp ahead of the encounter: "The team are in good shape. This is a really important match in a competition that motivates us all and we're going into it brimming with excitement. It's going to be a tough game against well-organised opposition, so we'll have to play a lot of good football to find ways past them."

Celta and Krasnodar have never faced each other before, but the Galicians have fared well in their four encounters against Russian clubs, winning two and drawing the other two. Nevertheless, the Vigo outfit are certain not to underestimate opponents who defeated Real Sociedad in the 2014/15 Europa League playoff round in their only previous meeting with a Spanish side.

Krasnodar are already enjoying their best-ever European campaign and will be equally eager to keep their run going. However, their top scorer, Fedor Smolov, will be missing at Balaidos because of injury, while Charles Kabore and Vitali Kaleshin are also out due to suspension.