Celtic have missed Alistair Johnston, but it seems that those days are almost over.
Johnston was ruled out until November after picking up an injury in the game against Kairat Almaty.
Colby Donovan has stepped up in his absence after Anthony Ralston also got injured, and could even become the natural back-up.
Canada boss Jesse Marsch said Johnston is close to returning, but the right-back himself has revealed when he will be back playing.
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Alistair Johnston provides Celtic fitness update
The 27-year-old teased that his return would be sooner rather than later on his Instagram story, and in an exclusive sit-down with Celtic TV, told fans when he would be back.
He said: “It’s been a couple of months since I’ve been out there, but I’ve been good. I haven’t had any setbacks, which is nice.
“We’re getting close now, we aren’t going to put a timeline on it. But yeah, I’m feeling really good.
“I’ve got plenty of things circled in the calendar I’d like to be back for and be part of. We’ll just see if the body can match the mind there with that kind of stuff. It’s a massive block of games coming up.
Celtic’s record without Alistair Johnston
The Hoops have played plenty of games since Johnston picked up an injury in the Champions League play-off first leg tie, all with varying degrees of success.
Since then, Celtic have played nine times and managed to reach the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup, but struggle in Europe.
| Celtic’s record without Alistair Johnston (25/26) |
|---|
| Games played – 9 |
| Won – 4 |
| Drawn – 3 |
| Lost – 2 |
They dropped into the Europa League after losing to Kairat on penalties, while they were also involved in a goalless Glasgow derby game.
There isn’t long to wait, and his return is going to be exciting for us all.
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