Martin O’Neill has addressed his team selection for Celtic’s clash with Hearts.
It’s the match to end all matches in Glasgow, with the Scottish Premiership trophy on offer to the winner. Home advantage makes Celtic favourites.
The interim boss has gone unchanged with his starting XI, unlike his opposite number who has switched things up from the midweek fixtures.
Speaking before the game, O’Neill explained his decisions.
Thoughts on Celtic’s starting line up vs Hearts?
No Reo Hatate!! 😮
Martin O’Neill:
O’Neill told BBC Sportsound: “I’m feeling really excited by it. In the last number of weeks, we’ve won our matches to get us into this position.
It’s been a real, real tough go, but we’re here, let’s try and make the most of it.
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“I think if you’d said to me after the Tannadice game — there was an international break coming up after that — we lost that game, didn’t play particularly well.
“We had to win every single game to get to this position, I thought that might be difficult to do… but we’ve done it. So we’ve earned the right, here, to have a go against Hearts.”
On the team, he said: “I think I mindset, a reset, call it whatever you want…. I think it’s all having a bit of introspection of some description.
“I think, overall, it’s just lads deciding ‘Listen, we still have a chance at this, here.’ We have to play, almost, error-free football.
“Now that’s an impossibility, but what it means is [that] you have to take chances, and you have to defend strongly. And for the most part, we’ve done that.”
On Wednesday night’s effect on the game, he said: “I don’t think it was the decision.
“I think the confidence was there, I think the very fact that is that when Motherwell had equalised, we were still trying to get onto the front foot and actually try and score a goal.
“There’s been decisions all throughout the season. I mean, there was a decision earlier on, for instance, Daizen was actually fouled early on. It could easily have been a penalty kick.
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“You have to get on with these things, you know? And this is it — today, you never know. There might be a difficult decision for the referee or VAR to make today. One never knows .
“At the end of it all, whoever wins the title deserves to win it.”
The game isn’t the first title-defining final matchday that O’Neill has taken charge of, he’ll be hoping to exorcise the demons of 2005.
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