CELTIC have been warned they will have to keep cool to avoid an embarrassing Champions League defeat to minnows Alashkert - as temperatures in Armenia could reach 40 degrees Celsius.

Brendan Rodgers’s side were yesterday drawn to face Varuzhan Sukiasyan’s team in the first qualifying round of Europe’s elite club competition on July 11.

The Scottish champions have progressed to the group stages of the tournament twice since Rodgers was appointed manager two years ago.

And they are highly fancied to triumph in the Republican Stadium in Yerevan and then progress to play either Valur Reykjavik of Iceland or Rosenborg of Norway.

But John Sutton played against Alashkert with St Johnstone in the Europa League first qualifying round back in 2015 and was unable to help the Perth club go through.

And the younger brother of Celtic great Chris believes that Scott Brown and his team mates must be at their very best to avoid a humiliating result in their opening match of the new season.

“Celtic will be quite strong favourites to go through, but they can’t take anything for granted given our experience of a few years ago,” he said.

“Alashkert are not a bad team at all. There is the potential, albeit a very small potential, of a slip-up for Celtic.

“At the time, I thought they were quite a good team. We were really disappointed that we didn’t beat them and didn’t go through. But technically they were good, physically they were good.

“With the way football has gone now, you can’t take anything for granted when you meet a club from a smaller nation. You only have to look at Brendan Rodgers’s first game in charge to see that. It’s not easy.

“I think everyone is assuming that Celtic will go through again this year. That is a testament to the job that has been done there because they have managed to go through in the last two years. But there is a challenge for them.”

Sutton added: “There was a long flight, you have got the time difference and the first thing that hits you when you get out there is the heat. It was incredibly hot.

“I think the long flight does affect your performance. You have to get up early in the morning to get there and then spend a long time on the plane. It is not good for your physical condition.

“But it was the same for them coming back over here and will be again. Celtic will have had longer flights in the past as well going to Qarabag in Azerbaijan and Astana in Kazakhstan. I think they will stand them in good stead.

“We didn’t play at Alashkert’s home stadium, we played at their national stadium where Celtic will play. The ground wasn’t bad. It had a running track around the pitch

“What we would have really liked would be to have a really steep-sided stadium so we could have got some shade.

“I think people make too much of the weather conditions sometimes, but on that particular occasion it was a big factor and it will affect the Celtic players considerably.

“It is probably alright playing in 25 degrees or even 30 degrees, but we were playing in temperatures approaching 40 degrees. It was very, very hot.

“During the day when we were walking down the street we were looking for shade to jump into. That is something that Alashkert could use in their favour.

“But, then again, Celtic will have 60,000 or so fans behind them when their opponents come to Glasgow.”

Sutton brought to an end his 16 year playing career at the end of last season and took over as under-20 coach at Ladbrokes Championship club Morton in the summer.

The former Dundee, St Mirren, Motherwell, Hearts and St Johnstone striker feels Celtic may adopt a different game plan when they take on Alashkert due to the heat.

“Brendan Rodgers knows far more about these things than myself,” he said. “I know that Celtic build play from the back and pass the ball well and I am sure they will do the same thing over there.

“But one thing I would say is that Celtic like to press their opponents high up the pitch a lot of the time and I don’t know if that will be as easy to do over there as it would be in Glasgow because of the temperature and due to the fact they will be playing them so early in the season. They will be going into the game after a long break.”

St Johnstone lost their first game of their Europa League qualifier against Alashkert 1-0 – but they fought back in the rematch at McDiarmid Park a week later.

A first-half goal by Michael O’Halloran levelled the tie and when the visitors had Karen Muradyan sent off for a second bookable offence things looked promising for Tommy Wright’s side.

But Narek Gyozalyan netted for the Armenian club and a late goal by Brad McKay wasn’t enough to prevent St Johnstone from being knocked out on away goals.

Sutton anticipates that Celtic will triumph comfortably – but he stressed that they will encounter difficulties and will have to treat their opponents seriously to prevail.

“We hadn’t had much preparation for the game,” he said. “But we would have liked to have done a little bit better over there. But we got right back into the tie at home. We got 1-0 ahead in the second leg and they got a man sent off. We just conceded a sloppy goal.

“They are not a bad team and the long flight and the weather conditions will make it a test for Celtic. But you would still very much hope and expect Celtic to win and go through.”