Having watched FC København defeat AFC Ajax in his native Netherlands to book their place in Group F, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink is urging caution from his Celtic FC team-mates ahead of tonight's UEFA Champions League encounter in Glasgow, a game he looks set to miss through injury.

Major doubt
The 27-year-old Dutch striker faces a late fitness test after twisting his ankle in Saturday's 2-0 derby win against Rangers FC, although he told uefa.com that he "needed a small miracle" to recover in time to face the Danish champions. "It's a blow because these are the games you want to play in," he said. "The really big games are at UEFA Champions League level and these are special nights. I was really looking forward to playing in front of our home crowd, but hopefully the team will play well and we will pick up our first win in the group."

'Real boost'
The former PSV Eindhoven striker marked his 50th appearance in European competition with the opening goal in Celtic's 3-2 defeat at Manchester United FC on Matchday 1 and while they did not take any points from Old Trafford, Vennegoor of Hesselink claims the confidence garnered from that performance will stand Celtic in good stead for the rest of the campaign. "We were disappointed not to get the three points but it was a real boost to play so well at Old Trafford," said the forward, who has scored three goals in five games since his €5m move from PSV during the summer. "It was very positive to score two goals away from home and even though we didn't take anything from the match it has given us the belief that we can compete at this level."

Ajax warning
The next step is København and Vennegoor of Hesselink has some idea of what to expect as he was still in the Netherlands when Ståle Solbakken's side shocked Ajax in the third qualifying round. "I watched that game because I was still in Holland and København took many by surprise," he said. "We can't afford to be complacent. They are a very strong side but we know our qualities and I am very confident that we can play a good game at Celtic Park, with or without me, and get the three points."