Celtic predicted line-ups: Scales deployed at left-back but Kühn has to wait

Celtic predicted line-ups: Scales deployed at left-back but Kühn has to wait

Glasgow Celtic return to league action on Saturday afternoon,

hosting Ross County at Celtic Park in the Scottish Premiership.

Brendan Rodgers will face Derek Adams’ struggling Staggies side six days

after their facile 5-0 win over Buckie Thistle in the Scottish Cup,

as they try to make it six wins in a row in all competitions.

Indeed, Celtic’s last league match came on January 2, when they defeated St Mirren’s 10 men 3-0.

Rangers have narrowed the gap to five points with one game in hand,

so Celtic will be looking to maintain their lead.

The distance may perhaps be cut once further,

as Rangers face St Mirren in Paisley hours before Celtic get around to kicking off,

meaning that their lead may be cut down to just two points by the time play commences.

Ross County enters this game in terrible form, having last won a game at the beginning of December.

They now sit in the relegation play-off spot with 18 points, despite having two games in hand.

Adams will be aiming for a response in this game after being comprehensively defeated 3-0 at home

by Partick Thistle in the Scottish Cup the previous time out.

It is up to Celtic to ensure that does not happen.

With that considered, who will Rodgers start in this must-win match at Celtic Park?

Ryan McGinlay and Tony Haggerty from The Celtic Way share their perspectives.

Ryan McGinlay

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Finally, it appears like Rodgers has some selection issues to cope with, at least in a few crucial areas.

There is no doubt that Celtic must win this game, regardless of the Rangers’ score mere hours before kickoff.

We are now nearing the finish of the season,

with any additional dropped points appearing to be pounced on by Celtic’s opponents, and vice versa.

Nothing less than a victory will suffice against the Staggies,

therefore Rodgers’ team must triumph over Adams’ faltering side.

As usual, Joe Hart will start in goal for the club.

He’ll be hoping for another calm afternoon like the one he had against Buckie Thistle,

when he added another clean sheet to his record this season.

Though the keeper appears to be leaving in the summer after his contract expires,

he will be Celtic’s starting goalkeeper for the rest of the season,

bringing at least some stability and consistency to Rodgers’ lineups.

As previously stated, there will be several changes for this match, with one having to be imposed due to injury.

The left-back position has been heavily addressed,

and it will continue to be disputed as a result of Greg Taylor’s injury.

Celtic’s failure to sign reinforcements in this area will compel them to rearrange their cards and choose an alternative.

That alternative will be Liam Scales, who has done nothing to deserve to be dropped from his position in the middle of the defence.

Perhaps as a result of his adaptability, he will transfer across to allow

Maik Nawrocki to partner with the returning Cameron Carter-Vickers,

who recently renewed his contract. It will be great to witness this defensive pairing,

particularly  due to the fact that we’ve only been able to see them play together a couple of times.

This run of games will have been beneficial to Nawrocki,

as his injury caused him to be out for a long period of time this campaign.

As usual, Alistair Johnston will occupy the right-back slot for Rodgers’ side.

Despite Odin Thiago Holm’s performance, the club’s captain, Callum McGregor,

will return from an extended hiatus. From now until the conclusion of the season,

you would expect the captain to play in almost every game,

so giving him an extra week to rest will undoubtedly have helped his cause.

Alongside him, Paulo Bernardo will play in the number eight position,

hoping to maintain his red-hot form since returning to the team more regularly last month.

Providing goals and assists, much like the player in front of him,

the Portugal U21 international is one of the first names on the teamsheet

at the moment and is a good bet  contribute positively once again this weekend.

Despite interest from Atletico Madrid in the form of a bid,

Celtic’s star man Matt O’Riley will continue to play as the furthest forward midfielder for the club.

He ran the show – as usual – against Buckie Thistle and will be hoping to

do more of the same against Ross County. This midfield should have too much energy,

ability and dig for Ross County to deal with.

Moving forward, January signing Nicolas Kühn might make his debut.

Despite the temptation for Rodgers to put his new signing immediately into the mix,

Liel Abada will remain on the right side.

Rumours surrounding the Israel international appear to have died down since the beginning of the week,

implying that the winger will remain where he is.

As a result, he, like his opponent on the left, Luis Palma of Honduras,

will be a lock to start. Both wingers have an eye for goal,

albeit their deliveries into the box may be erratic at times.

If Palma and Abada are involved in the mood,

however, then Celtic could win this game by a sizable margin,

giving Kühn a perfect scenario to make his Celtic Park bow.

There are no surprises in Rodgers’ starting lineup this weekend,

since Kyogo Furuhashi is basically a lock at this point.

It was nice to see him score again against Buckie Thistle, assisted by Abada,

but the Japan striker needs to step up in the Premiership.

Celtic’s continued success is dependent on players like Kyogo,

and Rodgers has yet to see the best of the player under his management.

Still, this might be the game that brings it all together ahead of a huge second half of the season.

Despite their injury issues and unavailable players,

I believe Celtic will handily win this match by a few goals and begin as

they intend to go on  the rest of this league campaign.

Tony Haggerty

Celtic returns to Scottish Premiership action following a winter break,

hosting Adams’ struggling Ross County at Parkhead.

Rodgers’ side brushed away the cobwebs with a pretty straightforward 5-0 Scottish Cup fourth-round

win over Buckie Thistle, with five different scorers on the scoresheet.

Any dreams the Northern Irishman had of playing against a comparable team were dashed when

he announced that left-back Taylor will be out for a few weeks due to a calf injury.

The return of USA international centre-back Carter-Vickers,

who signed a new five-and-a-half-year contract, will help the champs counter their injury setback,

but the starting lineup will require some adjustments.

Hart will remain between the sticks, but will be supported by a changed back four this weekend,

with Johnston at right-back and Scales taking Taylor’s place at left-back.

That means Carter-Vickers will form a defensive tandem with Nawrocki.

In midfield, Holm, who scored his first goal for Celtic, will be replaced by captain McGregor,

who was rested. The captain will be joined in the engine room by the in-demand O’Riley,

who will be at the club at least until the summer, and the on-form emerging Portuguese superstar Bernardo.

Abada will start the second game in a row on the right wing,

but I fully expect to see Celtic’s new £3 million acquisition from Rapid Vienna.

Kühn will make his debut at some point,

with the manager conceding that he will see some playing time and be involved.

Kyogo will be deployed via the middle as usual.

Last Saturday, the Japanese striker scored again against the Highland League team, much to his joy.

Palma, his teammate and goal scorer in that game, will continue to patrol the left wing.

The lead at the top of the table might be reduced to two points by the time Celtic take the field,

but Rodgers’ players are well aware that there are no margins for mistake in the Premiership title chase.

Celtic are expected to come out firing,

and the Staggies could be in for a tough afternoon in Glasgow’s east end.

Take the lads in green and white to win this one easily.

Get more related news on https://dailysportnews.co.uk