Celtic return to competitive action against Motherwell on Saturday following a brief mid-winter break which seen them travel to Turkey. Neil Lennon’s men are of course well clear at the top of the table as they look to clinch their third straight title. Despite having played the least amount of games in the league they have a ten point lead over Aberdeen in second who have played two games more. December was a very successful month for the Hoops as they won all six league games, a run of form which they continued into the New Year in the their most recent league game away to St Mirren – a match they won 4-0. Despite the league looking like a formality already, Celtic will want to continue their excellent run of form and look to secure the title as soon as possible.
As good a run as Celtic have been on, Motherwell have also been in terrific form of late. The Steelmen have won their last six league games which has seen them rise up to third, just a point behind Aberdeen and with a game in hand. Their last defeat was actually against Celtic, in a match where they were on the receiving end of a 5-0 thrashing, at home. They’ve responded in the best possible manner and are on their best run of the season. They’ve also found their scoring boots of late having found the net 16 times in their last half dozen matches. Although they have well and truly put that defeat to Celtic behind them, they will want to avenge the embarrassment from that match by getting a result this on Saturday.
As well as having won every domestic match since the second of November, Celtic have plenty of motivation to continue to get results as they are looking to maintain their unbeaten record in the league. 17 wins and three draws from 20 matches played is a terrific record and testament to how dominant they have been in Scotland this season. They have also kept a clean sheet in their last eight games meaning they have went nearly 800 minutes without conceding a goal in the league.
Stuart McCall will not be short of motivation as he looks to galvanise his players ahead of Saturday’s match. The former Rangers midfielder would have been hurting every bit as much as his players after the humiliating 5-0 loss and he’ll be looking for his players to continue performing at the levels they have set in previous weeks. Having won twice against the Champions last season, the players know they have it in them to compete against Celtic.
These games often promise goals and there have been 17 of them in the last seven meetings. Celtic have only dropped four points at home this season but Motherwell will surely give them a bigger test than they were able to muster at the beginning of December. The fact that they haven’t conceded a goal in their last eight games means the price on both teams to score is tempting and with Motherwell in such good form they can put an end to that record.
Both teams to score 11/10 @ Boylesports
