Celtic FC Women v Aberdeen Match Preview…
Tomorrow lunchtime, Celtic FC Women return to the Excelsior Stadium for our penultimate home game of 2023. The Ghirls take on Aberdeen in what will certainly be an exciting contest against a side that is looking to break into the top-half of the SWPL1 table.
As reported by The Celtic Star on Friday, Kit Loferski will be unavailable for this game and for the near future. Fran Alonso told The Celtic Star: “We don’t want to risk her. We won’t see her probably in the next three games, but she will be fit and available for our first game in the cup in January.”
In Friday’s press conference, The Celtic Star also asked the charismatic Celtic manager if we are likely to see more of Celya Barclais in this game. He said: “The maximum she could play on Sunday would probably be around 45 minutes. That’s the protocol for her to come back to full game.
“Definitely she can play a part, and as you say, last week, she was outstanding when she came on. Won’t be in the starting 11 but I’m sure if she comes on, she will do very well.”
Last time Alonso’s sides faced Aberdeen was at the Balmoral Stadium in September. We came away with a 4-0 victory, with Chloe Craig, Shen Menglu, and Jenny Smith all getting their names on the scoresheet.
In their last five league games, Aberdeen have two wins and three losses. They have scored and conceded 12 goals in this time. Fran Alonso knows not to underestimate our opponents though, saying: “If I’m honest, I like Aberdeen. I think they’ve done so well this year. They are a very big threat on the counter. They have a player in outstanding form, Bayley Hutchison, one of the top goalscorers in the league, and I like that they are brave to play out, so it’s a very difficult opponent.
“What I’m looking for is to try to put in a good performance, hopefully we get the three points. If I can be picky then hopefully, we can get a clean sheet, and if we can score more goals then that would be perfect, but it’s not going to be easy.
“They are a very good opponent and if we can only get the three points then I will be delighted because it’s an important thing for us. But, as I say, we need to be at our best. Anything less than our best, then we could struggle.
“It’s going to be a difficult one, but it’s at home in front of our fans and we want to play at our best. When we score a goal against any opponent, our goal is to try to score another one, that’s not going to change, but they are difficult opponents.”
Celtic’s excellent goalkeeper, Kelsey Daugherty, says the squad is confident going into Sunday’s game and haven’t let the loss to theRangers get them down. She said: “I think the mood is good going into Sunday’s game. Taking a loss is always tough to do, but we will have several other chances to play them again. I think we are just looking forward to that, but, first and foremost, handling all the games that come in between. Especially this Sunday now.
“I’d say we are confident going into the game against Aberdeen. We always respect every opponent that we play. As long as we go out and do our best, then I think we will always feel confident.”
After my successful score prediction last weekend (5-0), let’s see if I can do two in a row! Celtic FC Women 3, Aberdeen 1. So, get down to the Excelsior this Sunday to support the Ghirls! The game kicks off at 12 noon and tickets are available to buy online.
If you won’t be able to attend, thankfully, the game will be available to watch on BBC Scotland.
Later in the afternoon, theRangers host Montrose, and a loss for our city rivals would mean that we take our spot at the top of the table. Montrose almost beat Glasgow City in their last fixture, so could the relegation candidates do Celtic a favour? Let’s hope so.
Jessica Elliott
PS – The war is over, the Rebels have won!
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