One of the stories leading up to Celtic’s Premiership clash against St Mirren on Saturday afternoon was the return of the Green Brigade.
Just as Celtic and Martin O’Neill learned their fate, regarding the post-split fixtures and their route to the Premiership title, the positive news to emerge in the build-up was the Green Brigade being allowed back into Parkhead.
St Mirren have always been tricky opponents for the champions of Scotland, but that didn’t stop interim manager Craig McLeish from mentioning the impact Celtic fans can have, and he made sure to tell his players.
“We spoke before the game about trying to survive the first 15 minutes,” shared McLeish.
“We knew it was going to be noisy in here. We knew they would be at it like they are fighting at the top end of the table.”
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Craig McLeish on speaking with St Mirren players about Celtic fans
It was a lively and positive start for Celtic. With the Green Brigade back in the building, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain opened the scoring after 15 minutes.
It was a cool and calm finish from Celtic’s January signing, and it proved to be pivotal because it was the only goal of the game, and exactly what McLeish didn’t want, given what he told his players, as he told St Mirren TV.
“I said to the boys after, I was proud of how they tried to play, especially in the second half,” said McLeish.
“We spoke before the game about trying to survive the first 15 minutes. We knew it was going to be noisy in here. We knew they would be at it like they are fighting at the top end of the table.
“Disappointed that we conceded right on 15 minutes. We didn’t quite get through that first spell. It probably came after our first decent spell of possession too – the quicker the ball goes forward here, the quicker it comes back, and they pen you in.”
McLeish comments on Celtic’s Scottish Cup semi-final clash against St Mirren
Celtic fans will still have nightmares about their Scottish League Cup final defeat to St Mirren in December.
At the time, Wilfried Nancy was in charge, and Stephen Robinson was in the other dugout. One has been sacked, and the other is now at Aberdeen.
Nonetheless, for the Scottish Cup semi-final showdown, there will be fresh faces in the Hampden dugout, and despite Celtic’s win over St Mirren coming a week before that meeting, McLeish still sees it as a completely different game to the one his players played at Parkhead.
“The semi-final game next week is a different game than today,” added McLeish. “It’s a one-off game.
“We have to use parts of today’s game and prepare for it. Celtic will adjust things. I am sure as well that we have to adjust some things. It will be massive that we will have our fanbase with us as well to help through the moment when you will have to suffer against Celtic.”
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