Celtic will have a chance to take stock before the season run-in commences due to the upcoming international break.
Brendan Rodgers’ men sit two points behind Rangers heading into this week’s round of Scottish Premiership fixtures, where they take on St Johnstone at home on Saturday.
Of course, the Bhoys can return to the summit if they see off Craig Levein’s men. The visitors come into this one with just one victory in their last six matches.
Nevertheless, Celtic will take a couple of weeks away from the limelight after full-time, with several squad players set to jet across all corners of the globe to represent their respective nations.
Close to home, Greg Taylor and Anthony Ralston have been selected for Scotland’s friendlies against the Netherlands and Northern Ireland later this month.
On a separate token, Callum McGregor is ruled out due to injury; however, Rodgers has issued a positive update surrounding his status, claiming his captain could be available once club football resumes.
Unfortunately, there is no room for Hyunjun Yang and Hyeongyu Oh in South Korea interim boss Hwang Sun-hong’s plans, though the former could be involved at the West Asian Football Confederation (WAFF) U-23 Championship in Saudi Arabia.
Celtic winger Luis Palma is at centre of club vs country debacle
Yesterday, we told that Celtic winger Luis Palma had suffered a fresh training ground injury that has made him a doubt to face St Johnstone this weekend.
According to reports, Rodgers is hopeful the 24-year-old can return in time to make the squad; nevertheless, he will take no risks surrounding Palma’s fitness and may give him the two-week break to recover fully.
Now, a spanner has been thrown into the works, with Honduras FA general manager Gerardo Ramos claiming that he anticipates Palma joining up their international squad ahead of a looming Copa America play-off tie against Costa Rica.
Ramos stated [cited via Football Scotland]: “Luis Palma has a minor injury that has been worked on with the National Team doctor in conjunction with the Celtic doctor. We are positive that Luis will be able to be there for this important match against Costa Rica.
“Logic tells you that Palma is one of the first on the teamsheet and we hope he is 100 per cent ready for that game. He does have a small injury, but it is nothing serious and he can recover in the coming days.
“We need the best possible squad for our dream of achieving qualification for the Copa America.”
From the outside, it will be intriguing to see if Celtic have any objections to Palma jetting off with Honduras, as there is some lingering internal distrust over his fitness.
The La Ceiba-born man has become the latest in a long line of Celtic players struck down by injury, including Cameron Carter-Vickers, Reo Hatate and the aforementioned McGregor.
In the next few days, there is likely to be some clarity on Palma’s situation, though we will need to wait and see on that front.
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