Martin O’Neill Sets Out Predicted Celtic Lineup Ahead Of Motherwell Test
Before the international break, Celtic need to bounce back from consecutive Old Firm losses. They will face Motherwell on Sunday lunchtime. This fixture at Fir Park will not be easy, even though the Steelmen have struggled recently with three straight league defeats and are failing to keep up with last season’s standard.
The Hoops secured an edgy victory back in May thanks to an injury-time goal from Kelechi Iheanacho. Still, they went down 2-0 on New Year’s Eve, and gaffer Martin O’Neill must prevent them from staging another surprise result before a gruelling schedule covering both domestic leagues and European matches.
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Predicted 4-2-3-1 Celtic Lineup To Face Motherwell
Defence
Viljami Sinisalo dropped his starting position to Sam Johnstone for a couple of games before getting the ‘number 1’ spot back after the veteran Englishman let in three goals against Rangers. The Northern Irish manager should pick him again, despite losses to Ferencvaros and the Light Blues on their own ground.
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O’Neill used an unusual ‘back three’ against the Gers but should return to his standard four-man defence. Alistair Johnston is back at training at Lennoxtown, yet the Canadian should not be rushed given his ongoing injury problems. Colby Donovan must keep the right-back job ahead of Anthony Ralston and Jordan Lotomba. Kieran Tierney stays put on the left, with his deputy Landon Emenalo still dealing with a pre-existing injury. Versatile Liam Scales could be chosen over Auston Trusty to link up with Cameron Carter-Vickers in central defence.
Midfield
Celtic lost Arne Engels, Reo Hatate and Paulo Bernardo this summer, but they restored balance by signing Mika Baur, Joel van den Berg and Oliver Sorensen. Jurgen Klopp gave Baur his senior debut during the break, and the German international now needs to show his midfield control with captain Callum McGregor as the ‘double pivot’. Van den Berg remains a doubt, but Sorensen, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke McCowan may come on as second-half substitutes.
Benjamin Nygren is a guaranteed pick for his creativity and goalscoring as a ‘number 10’, and the boss needs to choose Haissem Hassan and Camilo Duran on the wings, with James Forrest and Sebastian Tounekti available to support the high-profile summer arrivals. Yang Hyun-jun was part of South Korea’s Asian Games squad but picked up a hamstring issue in Japan.
Attack
Record signing Kasper Høgh has not scored since his hat-trick against Kilmarnock. Yet he is expected to lead the line ahead of Shumaira Mheuka and Callum Osmand.