Celtic face Hearts this afternoon in a top of the table clash at Tynecastle. Martin O’Neill’s side are six points behind the league leaders going into this game despite leaving Wilfried Nancy in a favourable position when he handed over the baton in January.
Celtic go into this game off the back of a hard fought point in the Europa League away to Bologna but know that they will need to be at their best to get a result against Derek McInnes’ Jambos.
Celtic Team News
Celtic are without Jota, Alistair Johnston, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Callum Osmand through long term injuries. However, the Scottish Champions will welcome Kelechi Iheanacho back into the squad alongside new signing from Borussia Monchengladbach Tomáš Čvančara. The attacking pair will likely play a role as Celtic look to find their killer touch in front of goal.
Kasper Schmeichel will continue in goals. The Dane made some big saves during the week that will have helped his confidence but he will also be eager to atone for Bologna’s second after being unsighted by the Bologna striker and Liam Scales.
Scales will start beside Auston Trusty, who was excellent midweek. Dane Murray got the nod ahead of the US Internationalist back in October but has since proven his worth to the squad. Julian Araujo will return to the team and start at right back with Kieran Tierney at left back.
In midfield, Callum McGregor will start alongside Arne Engels in the deeper central roles. Reo Hatate was shown red in Bologna after two petulant yellows. The Japanese midfielder may start due to being fresh but Benji Nygren’s eye for goal could see him start.
In attack, expect Daizen Maeda to start with Yang in the wide areas with Čvančara starting through the middle.
Predicted Celtic Team: Schmeichel; Araujo, Trusty, Scales, Tierney; McGregor, Engels, Nygren; Maeda, Čvančara, Yang.
Subs: Sinisalo, Welsh, Ralston, Donovan, McCowan, Bernardo, Hatate, Tounekti and Forrest.
Having had a very decent injury free run so far this season things have taken a turn for the worse for Derek McInnes recently on the injury front. Here’s a list of his current injury concerns as reported by The Scotsman:
‘Beni Baningime is suspended, Tomas Magnusson (hamstring) is a doubt and Cammy Devlin (ankle) is out, while Ageu (hamstring) and Oisin McEntee (groin) have only an outside chance of being fit. Captain Lawrence Shankland (hamstring) is out along with Stephen Kingsley (groin), Calem Nieuwenhof and Finlay Pollock (both hamstring).’
Match Officials
The SFA have confirmed that experienced referee Steven McLean will take the whistle for the clash. McLean, 44 , will be assisted by David McGeachie and Jonathan Bell. McLean has taken charge of two Celtic games this season – both big fixtures and both defeats. McLean was in charge for Celtic’s last game at Tynecastle and the Glasgow Derby defeat in January.
Meanwhile, at Clydesdale House, John Beaton is on VAR duties with Duncan Nicholson assisting.
Kick Off Time
The game kicks off at 3pm (Celtic Park Time).
Where to Watch
The game will be shown on Sky Sports Football with coverage from Edinburgh beginning at 2:30pm as Chris Sutton & Co watch on for the top of the table clash. Celtic TV subscribers outside Britain and Ireland will be able to tune in on the club’s streaming platform from 2:45pm.
Highlights will be shown on Sportscene on the BBC Scotland channel at 7.15pm with the programme repeated on BBC One Scotland at 11.40pm this evening.
It is a vital game for Celtic this afternoon and three points are a must as Martin looks to clean up the mess he inherited from Wilfried Nancy. It would be a statement victory and one that would establish Celtic’s title credentials once more.
And finally
It’s the last few days of the Half Price January sale at Celtic Star Books. Every book ordered is now just £10 and p&p is only charged on the first book at £4.50. So ordering three books will cost a total of £34.50 and given you a £30 saving. Order at celticstarbooks.com/shop
All Books Now Half Price in the Celtic Star Books January Sale…
Please note that p&p is priced at £4.50 is only charged on ONE book so you can buy as many of our books as you like and the postage cost will remain the same. Why not expand your Celtic library today?
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