Celtic are in Champions League action this evening as they face Aston Villa on matchday eight.
Brendan Rodgers knows his side are into the knockout playoff regardless of how this one plays out.
The manager also understands top eight is not out of the realms of possibility albeit it is incredibly unlikely considering the exact results the Hoops would need to make it there.
Unai Emery’s Villa are looking to bounce back from last week after the manager was furious with an AS Monaco defeat having warned Celts before that game of his side’s desires.
- Celtic starting XI: SCHMEICHEL, JOHNSTON, TRUSTY, SCALES, TAYLOR, MCGREGOR, ENGELS, HATATE, YANG, KUHN, IDAH.
- Subs: SINISALO, BAIN, PALMA, MCCOWAN, NAWROCKI, BERNARDO, MONTGOMERY, MURRAY, CUMMINGS, RALSTON.
Celtic starting XI vs Aston Villa confirmed
But Rodgers is without key players for this one.
Cameron Carter-Vickers is injured and missed training yesterday morning.
Daizen Maeda, meanwhile, is suspended after a red card vs Young Boys on matchday seven.
The Japanese star will also miss the first-leg of the playoff after UEFA handed down his punishment for “assaulting an opponent player”.
So it means the starting XI has a few tweaks but it’s still as strong as Rodgers could have gone with Kyogo also no longer available having departed for Rennes.
Fans had their say on the XI picked by the boss but it was the bench and squad depth that had many punters questioning their team.
A few younger players have been named on the sidelines and with less than a week of the transfer window to go, some fans urged the club to get a move on.
What fans were left questioning about Celtic’s squad
One said: “That bench,” with a nervous GIF as another commented: “Aw well, at least we’re through.”
One added: “Grim, but cmon lads give your all,” as a fourth noted: “Bare bones like”.
Others wrote: “Bench is grim,” and “In for a long night.”
Some picked out one area of the pitch they felt slightly nervous over.
“Watkins is gonna have a field day with Scales,” said one.
Another commented: “Scales, Yang and Idah must make things right for us!”
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
