As Celtic gears up for a crucial Scottish Premiership encounter against Livingston this weekend, the stakes couldn’t be higher in the fiercely contested title race.
Currently leading Rangers by a slender one-point margin, Celtic could potentially find themselves playing catch-up by kick-off on Sunday, depending on Rangers’ result against Hibernian the day before. Nonetheless, victory at the Tony Macaroni Arena would set Celtic up with the tantalising prospect of pulling four points clear of their rivals with a win at Ibrox the following week.
While the attention of many may already be drifting towards the next week’s showdown with Rangers, the immediate focus remains squarely on overcoming Livingston. This match is as pivotal as any in the quest for the Premiership title, emphasizing the need for undivided concentration and commitment.
Celtic’s last meeting with Livingston in the Scottish Cup, just two matches ago, showcased some great attacking play, with Daizen Maeda’s hat-trick and Kyogo Furuhashi’s late goal securing a 4-2 victory. However, it also exposed defensive vulnerabilities, something Brendan Rodgers is keen to address.
In his comments looking ahead to the match, Rodgers highlighted the need for a more disciplined performance.
He told Celtic TV: “We played Livingston only recently. Attacking-wise, we were very good in the game, but we gave too much away for my liking.
“So our mentality and focus is to go and play to the level of game that we want to play, but making sure that we don’t give much up in terms of opportunities and space. If we can do that, then we can have a very good day hopefully.
“Obviously, with Livingston being at home and on the astroturf pitch, they’ll maybe be more accustomed to that.
“Whatever team David Martindale puts out, they are normally battling and working very, very hard. We have seen that. They are a big physical team that play to their strengths and can play to their strengths well.
“But really, we have to control our game. Our focus is very much on playing in our rhythm and in our way. If we can do that, then we will be able to give the opposition more issues and more to think about.”
Anticipation is building for the team news, with fans eagerly awaiting updates on key players. Callum McGregor, Reo Hatate, and Liam Scales are all in contention to return to the squad, providing a timely boost. Meanwhile, the participation of Cameron Carter-Vickers is under scrutiny, given the artificial surface at Livingston and the looming Glasgow Derby.
