Dedryck Boyata and Stefan Johansen help Celtic to victory

Celtic 2 Stjarnan 0: Celtic’s Champions League journey began with a comfortable 2-0 qualifying win over Icelandic outfit Stjarnan at Parkhead last night.

The part-time visitors came with hopes of spoiling the party in the first leg of the second qualifying round but even though the home side passed up several chances to take the lead, they made the breakthrough when defender Dedryck Boyata – making his competitive debut – headed in the opener a minute from the break from Stefan Johansen’s cross.

The Norwegian midfielder made it 2-0 early in the second-half with a confident finish and even though second-half substitute Leigh Griffiths had a penalty saved in the 78th minute by former Motherwell keeper Gunnar Neilsen, the return game in Iceland next week should be a formality for Ronny Deila’s side, who will face tougher challenges if they are to reach the group stages.