Predicted Celtic XI vs St Mirren as seven-man injury crisis engulfs squad and three changes made in Paisley
Celtic make the short trip to St Mirren in the Premiership this weekend.
Celtic return to Premiership action this weekend when they take on St Mirren on Saturday night.
All is not well at Parkhead after a stormy AGM on Friday drove a further wedge between the board and fans. With a new manager still being sought, Martin O’Neill will again take interim charge for the game against the Buddies, who Celtic will face in the Premier Sports Cup final next month. Wilfried Nancy of Columbus Crew is believed to be the Celtic frontrunner but nothing has been agreed as of yet so O’Neill remains the leading man.
Not only that, but there’s an injury crisis engulfing seven players. O’Neill said: “We will not see him for the rest of the season (Cameron Carter-Vickers). It might be April before he’s even on grass. Funnily enough, I asked him on Wednesday if he thought he would be ready for the World Cup. And he said he thought that would be doubtful.
Who is injured for Celtic?
“With Alistair Johnston, it’ll be four or five months. Callum Osmand, although they had the same operation on the same day, his was worse, believe it or not and he’ll be five months. Jota is out now. I’ll not see him, in fact I’ll certainly not see any of those boys I mentioned. James Forrest is still missing. Kelechi Iheanacho has done some work, but wouldn’t be ready for this weekend. Marcelo Saracchi will also be out for St Mirren but he’s getting close again.”
Who will O’Neill opt for in Paisley? There are three changes from the side that easily beat Kilmarnock before the break, with Kasper Schmeichel retaining his place between the sticks. Two of the triplet of changes come in the full-back areas, with Jahmai Simpson-Pusey coming out the team and Anthony Ralston slotting in on the right.
Kieran Tierney’s substitute role for Scotland will be music to the ears of O’Neill who can slot him in for the injured Saracchi. The other change comes in midfield as Luke McCowan is replaced by Benjamin Nygren. O’Neill said ahead of kick-off: “I’m here for the St Mirren game. I’m working on the understanding that I’m here until I’m told not to be.
Martin O’Neill on St Mirren vs Celtic
“This will be a tough game and I went to watch them against Hibs, two sides that we have in consecutive weeks. St Mirren lost the game but they could have won it, as they had some VAR decisions against them. Can anyone explain VAR up here to me?
“I don’t know if it will be my last match in charge. I am going game by game. But you can also outstay your welcome here as well and if you lose games, people will want to make a change pretty quickly after that happens I understand that because we are in a results business, so we have to try to win.”
Predicted Celtic team vs St Mirren: Schmeichel; Ralston, Trusty, Scales, Tierney; McGregor, Hatate, Engels; Maeda, Kenny, Tounekti.