We’ve seen that Celtic have some incredible depth in their squad and can comfortably handle anybody in the country even when injuries strike.
Despite that, you always want to see your best players being available for a national cup final. Neil Lennon has a few injuries to manage going into Sunday’s game but some of the players might have different needs.
A recent report from The Daily Record gave some insight into the fitness of Odsonne Edouard, Mohamed Elyounoussi and Olivier Ntcham ahead of tomorrow night’s game with Hamilton.
READ MORE: Hamilton is Celtic’s priority – Lennon insists the League Cup Final against the Rangers can wait
It certainly sounds like Eddy and Elyounoussi will be missing for Hamilton, but there shouldn’t be a need to rush them back. If they are fully fit for Sunday then they’ve played enough this season to still be relatively sharp, if anything the rest might help them.
Ntcham’s situation could be different when you consider injuries and the form of others has limited his appearances this season. He could actually do with some game time to build his fitness, so there’s some good news as far as he’s concerned.
Speaking about Ntcham’s fitness the gaffer said: “Ntcham has a good chance of starting. As regards Odsonne and Mohamed, no. So we will see how they are.”
The report goes on to discuss the potential crisis at left back with injuries and Greg Taylor being cup tied for the final. He seems to indicate that Jonny Hayes won’t play against Hamilton but should be fit enough to play against the Rangers.
Lenny also seems to be suggesting that he’s not focussed on the final and he’s purely looking at tomorrow’s game. Obviously he has to say that, but he will be hoping to get through tomorrow night with no injuries and securing another emphatic victory to keep his team top of the league.
If things go well and some early goals are scored, it shouldn’t be a surprise to see some players subbed to keep them fresh for the weekend.
