With a circus of a sideshow since the draw for this tie was made, Celtic turned a simple trick of their own last night as they doused Linfield's ambitions with an icy spray of reality.

A double from the excellent Scott Sinclair sandwiched with a fine Tom Rogic strike before a late cameo from Stuart Armstrong gave the Parkhead side an aggregate 6-0 win, but the serious stuff starts now as Rosenborg await in the third qualifying round next week.

And for Celtic fans, it was the performance of £4.5m signing Olivier Ntcham who really caught the eye as the midfielder engineered a part in all three goals that came when he was on the potch before he made way for Armstrong in the second period.

Read more: Celtic star Moussa Dembele keen to strike up productive partnership with new bhoy Olivier Ntcham

Physically imposing, industrious and with an eye for goal, the 21-year-old made a decent impression as he showed up well in his first competitive start for the club.

In fairness to Linfield, this tie was over by the opening half of this game in Belfast last week and there was little of note in the manner in which Celtic dismantled them in Glasgow.

With much going on off the field around the clash against the Windsor Park side with plenty of talking points from the opening leg, Celtic made sure that whatever happened on the field was of a far more straightforward nature.

As an exercise, this amounted to little more than a case of easy consolidation as the Parkhead side brushed aside David Healy’s men to book their passage into the next round with ease.

With just a pocket of Linfield supporters inside what was a packed Celtic Park, there was little trading of hostilities until the Green Brigade held up banners portraying Brendan Rodgers as a man at work with another picture depicting him in beret and shades. The military connotations, impossible to ignore, could yet land Celtic in the dock again in the eyes of UEFA.

Read more: Celtic star Moussa Dembele keen to strike up productive partnership with new bhoy Olivier Ntcham

On the park, the only surprise that unfolded came in the starting line-up.

Moussa Dembele - hungry for a goal throughout - back in for Leigh Griffiths was expected after the news before the game that the Scotland striker had tweaked his calf, but Armstrong on the bench was difficult to ignore. The midfielder became pivotal to Rodgers’ Celtic team in the latter half of the season but the impasse over his contract situation may well be starting to bite. In that respect, he would have relished his goal that came with almost the last kick of the ball.

Similarly, Erik Sviatchenko will have had ample time for self-contemplation on the bench. With Dedryck Boyata expected to be out for at least three months, the expectation was that Sviatchenko would fill the void in the opening stages of the campaign.

The Dane, though, was poor in Belfast last Friday night and paid for the performance with Rodgers opting to go for a back three, that had Scott Brown falling into step on those rare moments when Celtic did not have the ball.

Ntcham, the club’s most expensive player in a decade, was in amongst it from the off. It was the 21-year-old who kick-started the evening to claim his part in the opening goal.

His rasping effort was blocked by Linfield defender Mark Haughey but turned in by Sinclair who followed up the shot.

Read more: Celtic star Moussa Dembele keen to strike up productive partnership with new bhoy Olivier Ntcham

By the time he made way for Armstrong midway through the second period he could boast that he had played a part in all three Celtic goals on the night. On last night's evidence, much more will be expected to come from Ntcham over the coming weeks but even at this early stage he looks more than capable of making an impact on Rodgers side.

That there had been just the one goal before the whistle went for the interval seemed odd given that most inside the ground would have required full use of all fingers and toes to chart the number of chances Celtic created. Roy Carroll had another fine night between the sticks just as he did in the opening leg, although Dembele really ought to have scored in the opening half after beating the offside trap with a delicate flick from the outside of his boot before screwing his shot badly off target.

Similarly, Callum McGreegor came close with a header with Sinclair continued to cause all manner of havoc whenever he went at Linfield with the ball at his feet.

There was an inevitability, though, that the roof would cave in as Linfield tired. Rogic netted Celtic’s second goal on the night almost immediately from the restart with a rasping long range effort before Sinclair added another as he surefooted his way into the box. Long before the game had hit the hour mark, Linfield were out on their feet.

Carroll prevented Sinclair from claiming a fine hat-trick when a fingertip save onto the bar denied the winger but he couldn't keep out another one from Armstrong as the game drew to a close.

For Rodgers. though, it was the first step on a journey they will look to lead all the way back to the riches of the Champions League.

They have started as they mean to go on.