Celta Vigo vs Standard Liege - Celta Vigo in positive mood

Celta Vigo and Standard Liege meet in a winner-takes-all Europa League clash at Balaidos, with a place in the last 32 up for grabs.

The teams are locked on five points apiece in Group G and, having drawn the counterpart fixture 1-1 in Belgium, victory for either would seal passage to the knockout stage.

Celta have not had the perfect build-up, losing their previous matches in Europe and the Primera Division, 3-2 to Ajax and 1-0 to Eibar respectively.

But manager Eduardo Berizzo is more than happy with the certainty of the situation in front of his team on Thursday.

"We would have agreed to play this game with Standard (at the start of the competition). We wanted to arrive here with our options intact and it is best is that we will play with our nearest rival at Balaidos ".

"It is the decisive match for the group classification. The importance is not only reflected in the rival and the competition, but the circumstances: we achieve a victory and we qualify full of hope and optimism."

Berizzo favours possession football and is happiest when dictating play and although he expects to be on the front foot again against Standard, he knows there is no margin for error at the back.

"Our team are protagonists with the ball but we must also calculate how to use it and without making mistakes, keep circulating the ball," he said.

"We must use the ball and sustain our attack without exposing ourself to risks and to counter-attacks. You have to be smart.

"We face a rival that will require us not only to attack well but to be safe in defence."

Like Berizzo, Standard boss Aleksandar Jankovic is embracing the black-and-white nature of the game.

"There is nothing more beautiful than a decisive away game in Europe to get over our last game (a 2-1 loss at Mechelen)," he said.

"If we win, we will be qualified so we have our destiny in our hands."