Are Scots 'navel-gazing' or are things that bad in Europe?

When Shakhtar Donetsk came from behind against Aberdeen on Thursday to win, a well-known adaption of The Simpsons meme "Won't somebody please think of the coefficient!" shot into the minds of Scottish football fans.

Well, if you don't laugh you'll cry.

Celtic were bamboozled by Sporting Braga, Rangers fell to defeat against Sturm Graz, and Aberdeen surrendered a lead at home to Shakhtar Donetsk.

Not for the first time this season, Scottish football was left faltering in Europe as a trio of bad results were recorded on the same night.

The difference this week, though, was all three teams were in competitions they'd been relegated to.

Both winless in their first two Europa League games, Celtic and Rangers continue to prove they're miles off the Champions League level, though Aberdeen did show signs of improvement as they kicked off their Conference League campaign with a narrow 3-2 defeat to the Ukrainians.

As Storm Amy lashes the country, has it just been a storm in a teacup around the continent or is a cold breeze whipping in off the continent?

On a night where Roma had three penalties saved at home in a loss to Lille and Ange Postecoglou's Nottingham Forest lost out to Midtjylland, was Europe's gaze really on our three representatives?

It's fair to assume the earlier blow of Sporting Braga beating Celtic would have caught a fair few eyes. And that's without the much-discussed disallowed goal which would have given the hosts a leveller.

As German commentator Derek Rae stressed, many across the continent are transfixed by the "tradition and atmosphere" that epitomises Scottish clubs.

A far-from-full Celtic Park will have surprised a few - if they hadn't been keeping up to date with the latest fan protest developments - as will their home defeat, as many still associate Celtic with their "fortress" in the east end of Glasgow. Even if it hasn't been that of late.

"When I talk to German colleagues, they always get goosebumps when they come to a Scottish stadium, especially, of course, Celtic or Rangers," Rae told BBC Scotland.

"When they travel to these venues, they come away thinking this is a real football country.

"But, of course, from a footballing angle, things have gone in the wrong direction in recent seasons."

'We can be overly critical of our own football'

After matchday two in the second-tier competition, Celtic sit 28th and Rangers 32nd in the 36-team league phase. Both in automatic elimination places.

Much has been made of the European expectations of Celtic this season given their gutsy showing - though ultimate narrow defeat - against Bayern Munich in the Champions League play-off in February, while Rangers have been regulars in the latter stages of the Europa League season after season - the peak of course, the final in 2022.

Thursday's results have contributed to the overriding recent feeling in the nation of regression.

But do the rest see it that way?

"The perception is not as dramatically great or bad as we Scots might think," Rae said.

"I think sometimes we like to do a bit of navel-gazing, which is right, we are Scots and we do like to sometimes be overly critical of our own football.

"But I don't know that around Europe there's a feeling that, 'oh my goodness, Scottish football is so much worse than it was three or four years ago'."

Rae added the prospering reputation of international players at non-Scottish clubs could aide the attitude towards our game, highlighting yet another magic night for John McGinn and his Aston Villa side.

Thankfully for those fans left feeling flat, an international break with Scotland is just round the corner to save them.

Why does it matter?

The key thing on the line other than cold, hard cash, is cold, hard coefficient points.

These are what determine where your country sits in the rankings, and ultimately decides how many European spots you're going to get and where you're getting them.

As things stand, Scotland are 40th in the table this season of coefficient points earned. That has them 18th in the overall table - which is based across five seasons - now behind the likes of Cyprus.

Unless the nation's standing can be improved to 14th, Scottish clubs would go into future campaigns in their worst position since 2012.

That would mean representation dropping from five to four clubs in two years' time.

Future champions would have three Champions League qualifiers instead of one, the runners-up would have three Conference League qualifiers - along with the team finishing third - instead of three in the Champions League, while the Scottish Cup winners would have four Europa League qualifying ties instead of one.

Falling out of the top 12 already means that next season's Scottish Cup winners will enter the Europa League third qualifying round instead of the play-offs and will not be guaranteed group stage football.

Meanwhile, the team finishing third in the Premiership will enter the Conference League in the second qualifying round instead of the same stage of the Europa League.

Thursday was a grim day for Scottish teams in Europe. More may lie ahead unless the winds of change sweep in soon.