Martin O’Neill says there is optimism that Kieran Tierney could return in time for Saturday’s clash with Motherwell, although the situation surrounding Callum McGregor remains less clear…
The Hoops were forced to face the Rangers without two of their most influential players, yet still managed to endure sustained pressure before pushing the quarter-final tie to a penalty shootout, where O’Neill’s men eventually secured victory.
Tierney missed the match after sustaining a foot injury during Celtic’s encounter with Aberdeen last Wednesday, while McGregor’s absence came as a surprise. O’Neill later revealed the midfielder had experienced a recurrence of an issue that first troubled him last season.
Speaking after the match, the Celtic boss provided an update on the recovery outlook for both players as the squad have a well-earned recovery period before this weekend’s massive Premiership encounter.
Martin O’Neill said: “I’m hoping that he [KT] will be back for next week. Callum, we would just have to have a look.”
“Before the game, when the two of them dropped out, it was a major loss. So for the players to compensate for that, it was brilliant.”
O’Neill said the squad deserved significant recognition for their efforts in difficult circumstances, praising the players for stepping up and delivering despite being without their normally ever-present captain.
“I think that [winning without McGregor]shouldn’t be overlooked ,” the Celtic boss outlined.
“He was feeling it in Aberdeen [on Wednesday]. I think the medical team were saying it’s something that was here last year and maybe has come back. So the best thing to do was just to take him out of it.”
“Kieran Tierney was certainly not right to start in the game. He might have been able to have come on, I think, but I thought, well, who knows what might happen during the course of it.”
“He might have been forced to go on after five minutes in the match and he wouldn’t have lasted. So for us to miss two big players like that there and still come through, it was brilliant.”
Conor Spence
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Calmac playin v Auchinlek & the dead rubber 2nd leg v Stuggart was absolute stupidity.