Celtic are aiming to bounce back from successive Scottish Premiership defeats this weekend and it’s defensively dogged foes Livingston who visit Glasgow.
The Bhoys must see out this four-game period before the winter break without conceding more ground to second-placed Rangers.
The pressure is on to string together an unbeaten run and nothing less than three points will suffice on Saturday.
This week, the squad have been coming to terms with the 2-0 loss to Hearts last Saturday, which defender Liam Scales has admitted has been “tough” on the group.
For manager Brendan Rodgers, it’s been an important period of reflection and he’s concluded what’s needed from his squad from this point onwards.
Brendan Rodgers makes Celtic expectations clear
Speaking in a media conference on Friday, the manager said [Celtic YouTube]: “It was clearly a very disappointing performance and result for us. But it’s really about reinforcing the strengths of our game and the importance of playing to those strengths.
“It’s been a good week for reflection, but you do your talking on the pitch and that’s where we’ve done our work. We’ll look to bring that positivity into the game tomorrow.
“It’s all in your results. It’s pretty clear if you see the stages of the game when the tempo was up and down, that’s about desire and mentality. The group are a fantastic group of players, it’s not a slant on any individual. It’s what is needed and required at a big club.
“When you prepare as well as they do and you can take that work rate and mentality – you have to have that – at a club like this it’s about consistency and bringing that to the game. That’s part of finding out what it’s like to play for Celtic. You can have no drop-off.
“From that first whistle going, you have to have that intent and ambition and desire to win the game. That brings your tempo up and for us, the tempo, especially at the beginning of the game, was nowhere near the level we would expect. So that’s been our very frank, open conclusion on it and we look to be better going forward.”
This week feels like a crossroads in Celtic’s season. The Bhoys either bounce back from recent setbacks and show their mettle as potential champions or wilt under pressure.
Fans are eager to see a reaction from the players and, most importantly, a bit of winning consistency.
With no European distractions and a mid-week of rest, there are zero excuses left and three points on Saturday will hopefully be the beginning of a fightback going into the winter break. Get it done!
In other news, Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers plays down Matt O’Riley concerns.
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