Hearts v Celtic – A game to relish for Brendan, his players and Celtic supporters

Hearts v Celtic is a game we should all be relishing, the manager, the players and the supporters…

Tynecastle
Photo by Vagelis Georgariou

Morning all, hope you all enjoyed your extra hour in bed with the clocks going back in the wee small hours of the morning.

But when it comes to Celtic,  we certainly can’t afford to relax as this lunchtime will see us facing our biggest challenge of the season as we take on league leaders Hearts at Tynecastle looking to narrow their lead to two points with a decent performance and a win victory.

It’s fair to say that we’ve been under par thus far this campaign, even in its infancy, but after a decent fine on Thursday night we can head to the capital with optimism. We don’t have our injury problems to seek, with Alistair Johnston, Cameron Carter Vickers and Kelechi Iheanacho all out, and possibly Daizen Maeda, but we should still have more than enough to win the game.

Tynecastle
Tynecastle. Photo by Vagelis Georgariou

It’s Hearts at Tynecastle, not Barca at the Camp Nou, a game that we are more than capable of winning, we are the champions after all, so let’s show that today. It’s a challenge we should all be relishing, the manager, the players and the supporters, this is what football is all about.

Whatever the final result later today, Hearts will still be top, but we want that to be a two point lead and not eight or five. It’s more than a realistic expectation.

Liam Scales of Celtic celebrates
Liam Scales of Celtic celebrates with Colby Donovan of Celtic after scoring to tie the game 1-1. Celtic v Sturm Graz, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Celtic Park, 23 October 2025. Photo Stuart Wallace IMAGO/Shutterstock

The thing about that win over SK Sturm Graz on Thursday night was that it was one of the few big ‘must win’ games that Celtic have actually won in 2025. We got past Young Boys in the Champions League with a late own goal then lost the tie against Bayern Munich despite playing brilliantly at the Allianz Arena.

We have failed to beat a bang average theRangers in 2025 and have one more shot at that next weekend.  Then there was the Scottish Cup Final calamity against a poor Aberdeen team before the costly embarrassment against Kairat Almaty and then taking one point from six in the two opening games of the Europa League when six could have been won – did we ever hear from UEFA why that goal was disallowed against Sporting Braga?

Benjamin Nygren of Celtic celebrates
Benjamin Nygren of Celtic celebrates scoring his team’s second goal with teammates (L-R) Marco Tilio, Kieran Tierney and Liam Scales during the UEFA Europa League 2025/26 League Phase MD3 match between Celtic FC and SK Sturm Graz at Celtic Park on October 23, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Terrible performances, hard luck stories and the glorious failures but they all created a worrying trend that was finally broken on Thursday night. Celtic can take that into today and the other crucial upcoming games and that will help to lift the cloud that has been hanging over the club in recent months where the supporters have been unhappy – and with good cause.

A Celtic win today will seem significant and not just because we’d have narrowed the gap. Today we head to Tynecastle with a spring in our step for the first time in a while. 2025 has certainly been a challenging year for Celtic but we can end it on a high with real momentum the prize today as we eye the three points by bursting another bubble, just like we did to Aberdeen this time last year.

Let’s do it Celtic.

COYBIG!

Just an Ordinary Bhoy

Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter, signed copies by Danny McGrain available from celticstarbooks.com 

Don’t miss the chance to purchase the late, great Celtic historian David Potter’s final book. All remaining copies have been signed by the legendary Celtic captain  Danny McGrain PLUS you’ll also receive a FREE copy of David Potter’s Willie Fernie biography – Putting on the Style, and you’ll only be charged for postage on one book.  Order from Celtic Star Books HERE.

Celtic in the Eighties and Willie Fernie - Putting on the Style both by David Potter
Celtic in the Eighties and Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style both by David Potter. Photo The Celtic Star
Danny McGrain signing copies of Celtic in the Eighties
Danny McGrain signing copies of Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter. Photo: Celtic Star Books

About Author

The Celtic Star founder and editor David Faulds has edited numerous Celtic books over the past decade or so including several from Lisbon Lions, Willie Wallace, Tommy Gemmell and Jim Craig. Earliest Celtic memories include a win over East Fife at Celtic Park and the 4-1 League Cup loss to Partick Thistle as a 6 year old. Best game? Easy 4-2, 1979 when Ten Men Won the League. Email editor@thecelticstar.co.uk

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