Celtic must ensure they hand out no more gifts, starting today

When it comes to being hit with injuries aplenty, coupled with a covid-19 impacted squad, Neil Lennon is likely to have both sympathy and indeed empathy is spades for the manager in the home dugout this afternoon.

Lennon himself has had to face huge domestic and European encounters, including the not insignificant matter of a Glasgow Derby, without a host of first team players. Be that by way of an injury list or a Covid and track and trace hit squad, Lenny has experienced it all this season. As such being able to relate to Brian Rice’s plight will come easy.

But season of goodwill or not Celtic have to think only of themselves at present. There will be plenty of time for a ‘been there pal’ chat over a post-match fist pump between the pair, however Celtic have to focus on the job at hand with a sense of selfishness out of kilter with the time of year. The time for exchanging gifts expired yesterday and for Celtic today has to be all about being on the take at the Fountain of Youth stadium this afternoon.

Photo: Jeff Holmes

Brendan Rodgers’ buzz-word for the Invincible season – and one now being plagiarised by the unoriginal Steven Gerrard over at Ibrox – was relentless. For Neil Lennon and the Celtic players, now having to scrap and scratch their way back into a title race, the new R word has to be Ruthless.

Celtic began their excessive gift-wrapping campaign far too early this year, as the wheels came off and we started offering goalscoring opportunities with bows attached for the opposition as far back as October. But of late there has been an improvement.

A clean sheet today would be the third on the trot in the Scottish Premiership for a much-maligned Celtic defence, and with the ball finding the net more regularly at the other end Celtic have to continue with an Ebeneezer Scrooge inspired approach to defending the area while hitting the net with the proficiency Santa reserves for Christmas Eve and Chimneys.

Neil Lennon’s comments that his side’s focus is not waylaid by thoughts of a visit to Ibrox are welcome. To ensure a ruthless streak is continued we can only focus on one game at a time starting with Hamilton today, before we turn our thoughts to Dundee United at Celtic Park. Minds wandering any further can only be a distraction.

(Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

As such Celtic must look to take advantage of our opponent’s difficulties today and save the sympathy for after the event.

Celtic face a Hamilton team capable of putting the ball in the net, indeed both sides have scored in 11 of their past 14 matches in all competitions, though it’s the defensive record of the opposition where Celtic can take advantage.

Accies have conceded 42 goals in 19 games, a worse record than Celtic’s 33 conceded in their last 14 games. If we have turned a corner defensively as recent clean sheets indicate, we need to ensure we continue that today and employ some of that ruthlessness in the final third this afternoon.

Celtic returned to a welcome front two on Wednesday night against Ross County, and although Odsonne Edoaurd and Leigh Griffiths looked a little rusty there were clear cut chances created by both, alongside enough evidence to suggest a continuation of that two-pronged attack today is entirely merited.

Indeed, in games at home going back to Boxing Day last season, Hamilton have won only twice at home with three draws and a massive nine defeats in that time. With Celtic having emerged victorious with 4-1 and 5-1 victories in 2020 against today’s opposition there is good reason to consider Celtic can not only win today but also eat into not only a points deficit but also that gulf in goal difference.

Celtic as we know are already 16 points behind theRangers in the title race and the argument would be that could even worsen given our rivals play prior to Celtic this afternoon.

Yet the positive to take is Celtic could be in a better position to take advantage by 3pm. Hibs after all have already taken points off theRangers this season and Jack Ross has built a side more than capable of scoring goals. With St Mirren defeating theRangers in the League Cup and with Motherwell, a team showing nowhere near the level of form as the Hibees this year, taking the lead and creating numerous other opportunities at Ibrox last weekend, then it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Hibs could get a result at Ibrox today.

If Celtic are afforded such a gift today, they need to be ready to pounce. Empathy and sympathy for this afternoon’s injury and illness hit opponent needs to wait.

Celtic have to approach every game from now on as the most important of the season, ignore distractions on the horizon and employ a ruthlessness that has to emerge as a habit. The season of goodwill has now passed. Celtic must ensure they hand out no more gifts, starting today.

Niall J

About Author

As a Bellshill Bhoy I was taken to my first Celtic game in the summer of 1987. It was Billy McNeill’s return to Celtic Park as manager and Celtic lost 5-1 to Arsenal . I thought I was a jinx, I think my Grandfather might have thought the same. It was the finest gift anyone ever gave me when he walked me through Parkhead's gates.

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