UNDOUBTEDLY many Celtic fans will be satisfied with the outcome of yesterday‘s Europa League round of 32 draw.

The thinking goes that, having avoided Arsenal, Dortmund or Napoli, this is truly a winnable tie for the Scottish champions.

While it leaves the door of progression open, I’m not so sure it’s a good draw.

Zenit lack the on-paper sizzle of an English, German or Italian side and the inconvenient part of it all is they are rather good, replete with star power. Plus a trip to St Petersburg in the dead of winter is likely not every Celtic supporter‘s dream destination, let’s be honest.

Read more: Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers insists Hoops will not be intimidated by Zenit support

They have serious money behind them do Zenit. Roubles aplenty continue to be spent in the Russian game and when you are backed by Gazprom, whose majority stakeholder is the Russian government, you are not talking small measures.

They are Zenit's benefactors.

I mentioned star power. Roberto Mancini oozes it, doesn’t he? You might recall the urbane Italian guided Inter to a narrow victory over Celtic in 2015 at the same stage of the Europa League.

His experience of that tie will mean there is no room for complacency in the Celtic camp. Remember this is also a man who not so long ago said he would like to manage the Hoops some day.

If you look at the Zenit squad, you see a few emerging trends. One is an Argentinian pattern. The club maintains excellent contacts in that part of the world and so you have the Leandro Paredes in the squad, an accomplished 23 year old previously at Roma.

Zenit also have at their disposal, quite a few members of the Russian national team who’ll open next year's World Cup against Saudi Arabia. The best of them is Aleksandr Kokorin whose pace and skill can be a handful for anyone.

They did a pretty good job of sweeping up players from Rostov, Champions League participants last season, when they hit the financial rocks.

Read more: Celtic head to Russia intent on their own revolution​

One problem Zenit have faced is being ready for the knockout stages in Europe after the long winter break in Russia, which lasts close to three months from December to March. It means going back in cold on the continental front in more ways than one.

In each of the past two seasons they have bossed their groups, only to stumble in their first competitive games of the calendar year.

It has been made clear to Mancini that a priority is to arrest this and end the winter jinx. It will be interesting to see what their Italian boss has in mind on the preparation front.

Why then, would I give Zenit the edge? This is where we make a case for the defence.

Whereas Zenit have capable defenders like the Italian Domenico Criscito and Serbian Branislav Ivanovic of Chelsea fame.

In comparison, Celtic lack defensive solidity and robustness as was evident throughout the Champions League campaign. Zenit, led by the wily Kokorin have the ability to exploit those weaknesses just as Anderlecht did most recently.

Celtic for me, need to improve their defence in the January window and considerably.

Read more: Experienced German defender Marvin Compper set to be Celtic's first January transfer window signing​

At the moment, I’m not sure with the personnel they have in place, they are good enough. Rest assured, Zenit will be looking at their squad to see where they can improve.

Celtic, who have made a fortune thanks to the Champions League these last two years, must invest in a defensive leader or even two.

It might be the Europa League but this is a Champions League style examination for the Parkhead club. Have the Hoops learned the lessons handed out in a chastening group stage just finished?

We'll find out in February.