Before Champions League nights return to Celtic Park again, Celtic must make the trip to Fir Park to take on Stuart Kettlewell’s fourth-placed Motherwell.
Celtic are unbeaten against the Steelmen since 2015 and, with things looking like they are finally starting to click for the club this season, Rodgers will be eager to get a convincing result in Lanarkshire before the visit of Italian giants Lazio to Parkhead.
Here is A Celtic State of Mind’s team predictions for Saturday’s early kick-off:
GK – Scott Bain
It will be a rare start for the 31-year-old this weekend as, much like last Saturday’s trip to the Tony Macaroni Arena, Bain will be the man to step in for Joe Hart.
The biggest issue with Bain is clearly his distinct lack of game-time – 60 minutes this season and just 90 minutes during Ange’s final campaign – so he simply cannot let that rustiness result in mistakes creeping into his game this weekend.
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The Canadian right-back has the grit and fight required to battle his way through a contest against a team like the Steelmen, who will be more than up for the challenge.
Johnston was up for the physical challenge last week and put in a good display against Livingston’s towering forwards. A similar performance and carrying on his good form will be expected of the 24-year-old.
CB – Liam Scales
Scales has been one of the standout performers for Celtic so far this season and he has been excelling in his attempts to silence the doubters and nail down that starting central defensive berth with options being depleted.
Maintaining his good form with a solid display will be good for the Irishman as he looks to keep his place in the team, building towards that massive fixture against Lazio next week.
CB – Nat Phillips
The English centre-back could be in with a surprise start tomorrow afternoon.
With Gustaf Lagerbielke suspended for Tuesday’s game against Lazio, giving Phillips the nod to get minutes into his legs ahead of that game would be a wise move.
LB – Greg Taylor
ACSOM has previously highlighted the tweaks Rodgers has made to help restore Taylor back to his best in recent weeks, and another solid performance to build upon recent displays will serve the Scotland cap well.
CM – Callum McGregor
Much like the aforementioned Taylor, McGregor has slowly been getting back to his best this season and having the captain at the peak of his powers will be vital for success against a game Motherwell side.
CM – Reo Hatate
The Japanese midfielder looked closer to his best at the weekend, winning and converting a penalty which opened the scoring.
With Reo signing his contract extension today, fans are delighted that he has pledged his future to the club. A good performance at the weekend will only go further in getting him back to the top of his game, which he will need to be for Tuesday’s big game.
CM – Matt O’Riley
The Dane has been Celtic’s best player so far this season, and the manager highlighted his form during his press conference as he stated that he expects O’Riley’s value to rise in the next few years.
As previously mentioned, Motherwell will be up for the fight and O’Riley will be key in the midfield to help prevent any attacks.
The Japanese international was one of the star performers last weekend against Livingston, earning high praise from the manager post-match.
Hopefully Daizen won’t have to do the running of two this weekend but another good performance will be expected from the relentless winger.
ST – Kyogo Furuhashi
The forward had a surprisingly quiet game last weekend against Livingston, along with another low-key display against Feyenoord in the Champions League. Fans are expecting big things from Kyogo in the Champions League with the 28-year-old still to open his account in that competition, but getting back in amongst the goals at the weekend will be a good place to start.
LW – Luis Palma
Palma has only started one game for Celtic so far this season, that being the trip to Feyenoord last week. If the Honduran is to be the starting winger in Europe with Abada out injured, then putting in a good performance to silence some of the critics would stand him in good stead.
JAMES MCKENZIE // Follow James HERE
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