GREG Taylor said tonight’s UEFA Champions League first qualifying round tie against KR Reykjavik would not be the same without the fans inside Paradise, but the Hoops defender insisted the players’ motivation is resolute.

Neil Lennon’s side will begin their UEFA Champions League qualification campaign at home tonight, but they do so without the incredible atmosphere that Paradise is so renowned for.

The support from the fans has been instrumental in helping Celtic create some historic results at Paradise over the years, and Taylor admitted they would be missed tonight. However, the Hoops defender insisted the motivation amongst the players will be unaffected by the special atmosphere they are accustomed to at home.

“We won’t struggle to get up for it,” said Taylor. “We want to qualify and that’s our motivation. We’ll miss our fans, of course. They’re the 12th man for us and on a European night, they’re superb. We’re looking forward to when they’re back but we know what tomorrow night’s all about and that’s our motivation there.”

Celtic’s postponed games have meant the champions have had nine days of preparation for tonight’s one leg tie. Taylor said the team are fully aware of the task in hand and added that Celtic will be looking to exert their influence on their opponents.

“Europe is massive at a club like Celtic," he said. "This is the first qualifying game and we need to go and win it. They’ll make it hard for us. They’ll probably keep their shape, sit behind the ball and try to hit us on the counter-attack. We’ll need to be aware, we can’t give any chances away defensively.

“Equally, we need to go and put on a performance and show what we can do. We need to put our strengths on to them and see how they deal with that.”

Neil Lennon revealed Celtic’s latest signing, Albian Ajeti, will be included in tonight’s squad. The Swiss forward has spent the last few days training with his new team-mates and Taylor said he has been impressed with what he has seen from the 23-year-old.

“He’s trained with us for a couple of days,” said Taylor. “He’s fitting in well and looking sharp in training, so hopefully in the near future, he’ll show what he can bring to the club.

“He’s a strong lad and his touch is good. He’s scored in the smaller games we’ve had with both his left and right foot, so I think he’ll be a bonus for us to have.”

Taylor: We'll miss the fans tonight but our motivation is unaffected