Who are Kairat Almaty? Celtic foes with Chelsea bound wonderkid offer up gruelling Champions League journey into unknown

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5 days ago

A gruelling trip to Kazakhstan is what stands between Celtic and the Champions League proper – and what a journey it promises to be for Brendan Rodgers and the brave band of Hoops diehards who make it.
When the names came out of the hat, it looked a good draw for Celtic who learned it was either Kairat Almaty or last season's foes Slovan Bratislava waiting in the playoff round.
Their third qualifying round encounter went all the way to penalties but eventually it was Kairat, courtesy of a penalty from Jorginho (not that one), who advanced to put them within one tie of a first ever Champions League appearance.
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Celtic though will be out to deny them that, and the Hoops are heavy favourites against a team who have only once played European tournament football in their history.
As they know from experience, though, trips to Kazakhstan aren't always as straightforward as they seem.
So, who actually are Kairat Almaty? And what sort of challenge do they pose to Brendan Rodgers and his team? Record Sport takes a look at what lies in wait for Celtic.
Who are Kairat Almaty?
There are two major footballing forces in Kazakhstan. One of them is Astana, who Celtic faced back in 2017 – and lost the return leg 4-3 after dishing out a Parkhead hammering.
The other is Kairat, the current reigning champions who are out to make history this season.
A footballing force from the days of the Soviet League, which they won twice in 1976 and 1983, Kairat have risen back to prominence over the last decade and a half and won the Kazakhstan Premier League for the fourth time in their history last season.
They've come through every round of Champions League qualifying to get here, and had to come back from a 2-0 first leg defeat to Finnish side Kuopion Palloseura to set up their thriller with Slovan.
They are very much a modern day force of football in central Asia and have taken strides under former Kazakh international Rafael Urazbakhtin since he took over last year.
Qualifying for the Champions League proper would be an historic accomplishment for them – though regulars in the qualifying phases, they have only once played European tournament football, and that was in the Conference League in 2021-22.
They boast a largely homegrown squad, including talisman and wonderkid Dastan Satpaev who has already secured a move to Chelsea after he turns 18 (more on him later).
But they also have a large Brazilian and Portuguese contingent, like striker Jorginho and left-back Luis Mata who they will be leaning on to provide the flare to damage Celtic.
Where do Kairat Almaty play?
The short answer? Miles away.
This is the fun bit as far as Celtic fans are concerned. The country itself is further east than Afghanistan, but Almaty is on the very, very far side of Kazakhstan.
4,500 miles separates Glasgow from Almaty, and the quickest the trip can be done takes over 13 hours, with a stop in Frankfurt along the way. Once you reach Astana – where Celtic fans flocked in 2017 – it's a further 1,000 miles south east.
It's a trip that separates the men from the boys. Once you get there, though, it all looks pretty nice.
Much like the 30,000 seater stadium rivals Astana play at, Kairat boast an elite standard 23,800 capacity stadium simply named Central Stadium, which they have owned since 2015.
The turf purists will be happy, because unlike their rivals, Kairat's home stadium has a grass pitch rather than a synthetic surface.
How good are they?
Celtic will be heavy favourites – early odds have Kairat at around 12/1 to cause an upset at Parkhead next week – but make no mistake, the Kazakhs are handy.
In recent years, they've beaten sides like Red Star Belgrade and AZ Alkmaar in Europe so this stage is nothing new to them. They've also faced Scottish opposition in the not too distant past – in 2015, they dumped Aberdeen out in Europa League qualifying before losing to Bordeaux.
Last year they tipped Astana to the title by a single point and lead them by three heading into final stretch of the 2025 campaign. The fact they already have 19 league games and three European ties under their belt also means they are likely to be sharper than Celtic who are still getting going for the season.
Kairat Almaty's danger men
Dastan Satpaev is the name on everyone's lips as far as Kazakh football is concerned. He only just turned 17 this week, and has already sealed a £2m move to Chelsea which he'll make official next year after he turns 18.
Long established as a wonderkid to watch, he's already scored three times in Champions League qualifying this season including the winner in the first leg with Slovan. He's also been capped three times by his country. Again; he only turned 17 this week.
Portuguese striker Jorginho is also a threat while midfielders Valery Gromkyo and Giorgi Zaria offer goals from deep.
They tend to spread the goals around and are proficient from set pieces.
Celtic face them at Parkhead on Wednesday, August 20 and will be aiming for a convincing victory that makes the gruelling trip east a week later that little bit less stressful.
If they don't get that, there's always a chance it could get hairy over there.