Celtic

The AFC Operations Team have been working around the clock this week with club partners to ensure that the stadium and pitch is clear for today's.

35 days on from their last competitive outing, Celtic are back today with Aberdeen the opponents. With our rivals across the city having cut our lead to six ...

Greg Taylor is the strong choice at left-back. In the centre, we’re tipping the big partnership from last season – Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Starfelt – to make a return. This is the team we’re backing to do the business in the Granite City.

Celtic legend Chris Sutton wouldn't accept a penny less than £25m as the starting point for negotiations over Croatian star Josip Juranovic.

I’ve already stated that, if Celtic are going to sell, they should be driving a very hard bargain and fighting for top dollar. "Seeing the Croat go wouldn’t be ideal from a team point of view. And Sutton is certain Celtic can't be letting such a sought-after talent depart the Premiership for anything less than market value given the significant sums that are splashed during every window by major clubs.

The Hoops are at Pittodrie as they look to return their lead at the top of the league to nine points. Rivals Rangers' hard-fought win over Hibs on Thursday ...

"We've scored the same amount of goals I think as Celtic and Rangers have done at home as well. Not only will you receive this article from Sean Martin, Tony Haggerty or Aidan Macdonald (or, sometimes, from all three) but you will also get easy access to our best content from the last 24 hours too. And the Irishman hasn't had to look too far for inspiration if his side are to get a result. It has probably been missed by a few people but our away form is not bad either." He said: "It is always a tough game. Rivals Rangers' hard-fought win over Hibs on Thursday brought the gap down to six points with Celtic now facing a tough challenge against Jim Goodwin's men.

The Dons start their double header against Celtic and Rangers against Ange Postecoglou's men in the first Premiership fixture since the World Cup break.

Kelle Roos maintains his spot in goal. [Aberdeen v Celtic: Channel, referee and more as Dons gear up for league restart](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/sport/football/aberdeen-v-celtic-channel-referee-7935409) [Jim Goodwin hints at Aberdeen transfer activity as Dons boss looking to strengthen squad further in January](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/sport/football/jim-goodwin-hints-aberdeen-transfer-7934832) [Aberdeen players visit Children's Hospital to spread festive cheer for young patients](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/news/aberdeen-news/aberdeen-players-visit-childrens-hospital-7934615) [Jim Goodwin relishing Aberdeen return to action but Dons boss wary of Celtic threat](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/sport/football/jim-goodwin-relishing-aberdeen-return-7933924) [Connor Ronan Wolves loan exit set as Aberdeen on transfer red alert](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/sport/football/connor-ronan-wolves-loan-exit-7931287) [Dons](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/all-about/aberdeen-fc) side since the World Cup break as [Aberdeen](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/all-about/aberdeen-fc) return to action with a clash against Celtic at a bitterly cold [Pittodrie](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/all-about/aberdeen-fc). [Facebook group ](https://www.facebook.com/groups/aberdeenfcfans)for all the latest Dons news [Kelle Roos not looking towards league table ahead of Aberdeen double header with Celtic and Rangers](https://www.aberdeenlive.news/sport/football/kelle-roos-not-looking-towards-7939150) Celtic pose a stern test, however, as the league leaders look to restore their nine point lead at the summit of the table following Rangers' win over Hibernian on Thursday.

Celtic can extend their lead at the top of the table to nine points again with a win over Aberdeen.

[here](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/newsletter-preference-centre/) Sign up to our daily sport newsletter There should also be no concerns over the fitness of Carl Starfelt, who was in and out before the winter period through injury. The task of facing [Celtic](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/celtic-fc) much success so far. [Ange Postecoglou](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/ange-postecoglou) hoping for a spotless December.

Ange Postecoglou snapped up the defender for just £2.5million from Legia Warsaw 18 months ago and they are set to make big money with transfer interest ...

I’ve already stated that, if Celtic are going to sell, they should be driving a very hard bargain and fighting for top dollar. [Juranovic](https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/all-about/josip-juranovic) has been a key man for [Celtic](https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/all-about/celtic-fc) since his arrival with a Premiership winners medal and domestic cup success while he's also picked up [Champions League](https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/all-about/uefa-champions-league) experience. "Seeing the Croat go wouldn’t be ideal from a team point of view. "I’d be starting with an asking figure for £25million. Postecoglou has Anthony Ralston on his books and has already moved to snap up a deal for Canada international [Alistair Johnston](https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/sport/football/alistair-johnston-handed-celtic-leader-25759736). [Ange Postecoglou](https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/all-about/ange-postecoglou) snapped up the 27-year-old for just £2.5million from Legia Warsaw last summer and after a stunning 18 months in Glasgow he looks certain to move on.

Chris Sutton insists that Celtic must maintain their outstanding domestic form that was evident before the World Cup break as soon as the action resumes at ...

It’s hard to know how the World Cup shutdown is going to affect teams in terms of their form and whether it changes the course of their respective seasons. “Celtic positively roared into the World Cup break. With Gio away it looks like wee-man syndrome is still part and parcel of the managerial mentality over in Govan.

PLAYING Aberdeen at Pittodrie in their first cinch Premiership game after the Qatar 2022 break was always likely to prove problematic for defending…

He was not the only Celtic player to lack a cutting edge. Not playing competitively for over a month was perhaps a factor in his out-of-sorts display. He made more passes than any other player in the Premiership this season and was a deserved recipient of the Man of the Match award. Maeda worked hard to break down the packed Aberdeen defence during the opening 45 minutes. But they also looked a threat on the counter attack. He stuck with his usual 3-5-2 formation and played with a five man defence out of possession. But he showed today that he will be. They were desperately unlucky not to earn a draw. He denied Jota and Reo Hatate before half-time and Liel Abada after it. Having the vastly-experienced 29-year-old on the park ultimately proved the difference between the teams. McGregor did not look in the slightest bit rusty after his nine week lay-off. Here are five things which we learned from the match.

Celtic somehow took 87 minutes to find a winner in a match they dominated against Aberdeen. Callum McGregor scored the winner to save their blushes late on.

The visitors returned to action after the World Cup break with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Daizen Maeda starting following their exploits in Qatar. Anthony Stewart comfortably cleared off the line from Furuhashi after the striker rounded Roos and tried to squeeze the ball home from a very tight angle, and the goalkeeper gathered a McGregor effort after Ross McCrorie's block had taken the sting out of the powerful strike. James Forrest back-heeled into the path of McGregor after coming inside from the left and the midfielder arrowed a 20-yard drive just inside the far post.

Callum McGregor returned from injury to fire Celtic nine points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership table as his late strike earned a 1-0 victory over ...

"We don't want to get frustrated against a low block, we stick to the structure. But we did well and have nothing to show for it." "We did well without McGregor but he's a fantastic footballer and we're super happy to get him back in the side. We frustrated them and hit them on the counter for large periods. I thought we were outstanding, committed and created a lot of chances. It was decided on a 25-yard strike at the end. It's easy to sit there and complain but the lads have the energy and the drive to dictate the tempo of the game. "We were disappointed at the end, to have contained Celtic until the 87th minute. It's a difficult place to come to and the goal came later than usual. There was one shot [for Aberdeen] right at the end, but we dominated the game. Kyogo Furuhashi then rounded the Dutch goalkeeper after being played in behind by McGregor, but Anthony Stewart was on the line to cut off his effort from a tight angle. For the second period, Postecoglou brought on Liel Abada for Daizen Maeda at half-time and the forward had an immediate impact.

Callum McGregor returned from injury to fire Celtic nine points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership table as his late strike earned a 1-0 victory ...

"We don't want to get frustrated against a low block, we stick to the structure. But we did well and have nothing to show for it." "We did well without McGregor but he's a fantastic footballer and we're super happy to get him back in the side. We frustrated them and hit them on the counter for large periods. I thought we were outstanding, committed and created a lot of chances. It was decided on a 25-yard strike at the end. It's easy to sit there and complain but the lads have the energy and the drive to dictate the tempo of the game. "We were disappointed at the end, to have contained Celtic until the 87th minute. It's a difficult place to come to and the goal came later than usual. There was one shot [for Aberdeen] right at the end, but we dominated the game. Kyogo Furuhashi then rounded the Dutch goalkeeper after being played in behind by McGregor, but Anthony Stewart was on the line to cut off his effort from a tight angle. For the second period, Postecoglou brought on Liel Abada for Daizen Maeda at half-time and the forward had an immediate impact.

The St Mirren game that is. The 2-0 loss in Paisley back in September is the Hoops' only blemish in a Scottish Premiership copybook that has yielded 15 ...

But at the same time, we are here to do a job for this football club and as long as none of us is distracted from that we will be fine." To be honest, a lot of the stuff you see might not be true, and some of it might be. "At the start, it was quite a lot for me to take, to be honest. For me, everything seems to be going pretty well other than that, so if I can add that layer in the last part of the season I will be in a really good place. "That was a bit frustrating at St Mirren and I sensed then it was a wake-up call for us to really stay on it every single game. It is probably something I have got more used to since I have been here. So I hope I can add that side to my game and with my usual creative side I should be in a good place going into the next part of the season." I am fully confident the lack of goals situation will change pretty soon for me." I have played deeper before but I don’t think I have done that as a single pivot. "I was on the pitch later, so I was still involved. I could have impacted the game and when I was on we still didn’t score. In my opinion, we should look to win every game, that is obviously the aim.

The winger was in fine form before the Scottish Premiership went into cold storage for the World Cup.

He was all set to go." He picked up the Player of the Month award for November after kickstarting his Parkhead career and was expected to be in from the start at Pittodrie for the league restart. However, Postecoglou offered a pre-match update on the condition of the wide man.

Callum McGregor returned to the Celtic starting XI and scored the only goal of the game against Aberdeen at Pittodrie. Ange Postecoglou's men expected it, their ...

“We showed bags of concentration to get to the point where we were hoping to keep a clean sheet. Kelle Roos had a few saves in the first half but had very little to do in the second. If we had been sitting here with a 0-0 I would have been very happy but we didn’t get it. It is not just about having the belief the goal will come but the way they went about it. They stayed disciplined, stayed controlled – credit to them, I couldn’t be happier not just about the points but the way they went about things. “The players put a lot into the game defensively and were very organised and committed,” said Goodwin. Celtic had 81% possession, fashioned 33 goal attempts – Kyogo Furuhashi missed a pinch when he knocked wide from the middle of goal early in the second period – and had almost 900 passes. [Jim Goodwin](/topic/jim-goodwin) side who elected to contest the encounter only in and around their own. “This is a difficult place to come to and I thought we controlled the game from start to finish. Precisely 100 of these netted outwith the environs of Celtic Park. Indeed, in the metronomic McGregor, a player whose 170 completed passes outstripped that figure of 118 from a home team that had not one single effort on target. However, with the [Pittodrie](/topic/pittodrie) back-five’s defending stout and studied, what it also ensured was that they didn’t give out easy chances to their opponents as had been the case when opening up for a 4-1 defeat at Ibrox last month, a day when Goodwin admitted they could have conceded 10.

Kyogo Furuhashi had a difficult afternoon in today's Celtic match against Aberdeen, but that hasn't dampened his feeling of joy at returning to the pitch ...

But being the type of character he is, he’s jubilant tonight regardless. 🤩 Thanks for the awesome away support 🙆🏼♂️” Kyogo had a number of gilt-edged chances in the Dons box to put the Bhoys ahead before being substituted for Giorgos Giakoumakis in the second half.

Celtic fans should be delighted by the latest update on Sead Haksabanovic, after he suffered an injury in training and missed the game vs Aberdeen.

Haksabanovic’s overall performances have been very impressive though and he is starting to make a difference in the final third as well. Naturally, it sparked fears that Haksabanovic had been injured leading up to the match. Going into the game vs Aberdeen, Celtic fans had expected to see the name of Sead Haksabanovic in the starting XI.

After five long weeks Sandman is back and he's hit the ground running showing no sign of rust or over indulging in World Cup refreshments...

OVERALL – 8/10 – 3…2…1…You’re back in the room…Well it’s been a hell of a month of Celtic absence, filled with back-to-back World Cup magic and back-to-back Cheers episodes from beginning to beautifully poignant end to fill the downtime. THE BUILDER – 7.5/10 – Relinquished of responsibility for the midfield security, his was back to being a role of creative. ANITA DOBSON – 8.5/10 – Until the bitter end. We didn’t give them the ball, and the agitated monkeys behind the scenes with their Simon games at the ready didn’t get a sniff of Celt-baiting. So we rock up to the Pen by the sea and it’s business as usual. HAKUNA HATATE – 7/10 – A busy little bee for the majority of his time. Early, he looked lively and potent, but by the time the grind of running at and along a red wall had dimmed his spark, this movie star was heading for a soap. Jamesy’s pumped a few sheep in his time and on he came today, sprinting around like Forest Gump had a line too many, but once more helped with a some strong penetrating play – of course… Gave us fine options on the right and created space for Tony to roam in support. GET CARTER – 6.5/10 – Solid and uncompromising, as ever. But, like a good pastry, he rose to the challenge and his intelligent runs opened up just enough space to make a difference in the end. Kept aware of the speedy danger of a Portuguese duck anticipating a slip, made every interception and back-pass with focus.

Josip Jurnanovic cherished his World Cup bronze medal with Croatia and immediately turned his thoughts to Celtic's huge lead over Rangers.

Criticism like that motivates [Lionel Messi](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/all-about/lionel-messi) too. [Rangers](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/all-about/rangers-fc)!" [World Cup](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/all-about/world-cup-2022-1) bronze medal with Croatia and immediately turned his thoughts to Celtic's huge lead over Rangers.

Aberdeen have been criticised for their defensive approach in their 1-0 defeat by Celtic having taken no points from three games against the Old Firm.

In Miovski and Duk, they had two of the in-form forwards in the division. Aberdeen, who have much greater resource, are now under pressure to do the same. "Not being as open and expansive as Aberdeen were at Ibrox against Rangers. He can't be as expansive as he was at Ibrox. Next up, is the visit of Rangers. We tried to have a go at Rangers at Ibrox and lost 4-1. St Mirren's strikers had almost double the number of touches that Bojan Miovski and Duk did at Pittodrie. And nobody would disagree they were outplayed. "It's not a way I particularly enjoy setting my team up, but we respected the opposition before the game. Even if Aberdeen had come out of this game with a point, I still don't think it's acceptable. Aberdeen at home against anybody with 19% possession is embarrassing." "We tried to have a go at Celtic on the opening day of the season and lost 2-0.

A PHRASE that Ange Postecoglou used during a Lennoxtown training session which was filmed and broadcast on Celtic TV not long after the…

They had nine men in and around their penalty box for pretty much the duration of the encounter. Next up is Livingston at home in the Premiership on Wednesday night. Forrest backheeled the ball to his old mucker McGregor and the skipper, returning to action after nine weeks out with a knee injury, made no mistake. Postecoglou enjoyed an outstanding debut season at Celtic and led his team to a League Cup and Premiership double. Or of losing in one of the cup competitions? Their supporters revel in their heroes’ willingness to fight for every ball from kick-off to the final whistle and that admirable trait certainly reflects well on Postecoglou’s motivational abilities.

Ange Postecoglou got the plaudits from Pittodrie. Jim Goodwin just got panned. The Hotline had plenty to say about Celtic's 1-0 win over Aberdeen in the ...

This isn’t having a go at anybody as obviously the likes of Ross County and Aberdeen have to travel further on a weekly basis when playing away.” It’s time Forrest, Turnbull and Abada got a run in the team. He said: “Congratulations to James Forrest for his 100th goal assist to go with his 100+ goals and do what only Jimmy Johnstone and Henrik Larsson have done before him at Celtic. Add to that, Celtic were camped in Aberdeen’s 18-yard box for most of the game. Andrew Lamb, Fraserburgh, said: “Despite the hype over Dons strikers, Joe Hart probably didn’t have a single save to make against Aberdeen. But if you are going to keep trying to dance the ball into the net, then you need players with good skills and vision."

Celtic dominated Aberdeen but were unable to find a breakthrough - until their returning captain took them up a level.

[Carl Starfelt](https://theathletic.com/football/player/carl-starfelt-GPcOc7z5Y0lu9Dsh/) acted as sweepers. “Cal (McGregor) kept his foot on the accelerator just the right amount.” That’s a small margin for error. That’s now seven league games this season in which Celtic have allowed their opponents just five or fewer shots. On that day, Celtic had already scored four times by the break while against Aberdeen, two-thirds of their efforts were from outside the penalty area. They have required patience against defensive tactics from domestic opponents. This moment highlighted McGregor’s unique ability to give Celtic attacking impetus and defensive security. Aberdeen were in their best run of home form since 2017, with five league wins in a row at Pittodrie Stadium, and parked the bus to frustrate the visitors. He did try and move Celtic higher up the park, making 31 passes into the final third. Before the match, Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou was typically forthright about the benefit of his captain’s return, with McGregor featuring for the first time since he was ruled out with a knee injury in October: “The boys stepped up. To make way for Mcgregor’s return, Hatate was less involved in ball progression and struggled to adapt. However, McGregor had shown that switching up Celtic’s approach could lead to chances.

CELTIC manager Ange Postecoglou praised his players following their 1-0 win over third-placed Abe...

"This football club demands that of you and you either can shy away from that or embrace it and I think this group of players, from the first day I walked in last year, have embraced that. "We were really disciplined in our approach and didn't get frustrated because it would have been easy to get frustrated and I thought we got the rewards we deserved. "I thought we were in total control of the game,"

Juranovic is being linked with some of the biggest clubs on the planet like Chelsea, Manchester United, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. Chris Sutton expects ...

Juranovic is being linked with some of the biggest clubs on the planet like Chelsea, Manchester United, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. Thus, Juranovic will be returning to Glasgow with a World Cup medal in his suitcase. But at the same time, one cannot overlook the fact that key players are being linked with moves away from the club and them leaving in the middle of the campaign would be bad news for Ange Postecoglou’s side.