Celtic to find out Befred Cup fate on Sunday

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Celtic are set to learn their fate on Sunday with the Betfred Cup last-16 draw.

The draw will take place after the final group stage game between Dundee and Inverness. It will also take place live on BT Sport 1 after the televised match. Hoops fans looking to view the draw live can see it after the 3pm kick-off.

The draw will determine who Neil Lennon will face in his first League Cup match in his second spell as Celtic manager. Incredibly, the Hoops will be looking to defend the tournament for the third consecutive time. Brendan Rodgers’ era of dominance has seen Celtic sweep the competition in each of the last three seasons.

Last season, Celtic were tasked with heading to Partick Thistle who had just been relegated to the Championship in the last-16. It’s absolutely vital for Celtic not to take any lower-league side seriously, however. The 3-1 win at Firhill last year was only won after two goals in the closing stages by Moussa Dembele and Tom Rogic.

In the years previous, Celtic have opened their Betfred Cup campaigns at home to Motherwell and Kilmarnock in two respective 5-0 romps. Something similar this year would be most welcome.

Betfred Cup draw a sign the season has truly started

Celtic have a sensational record in the Betfred Cup. That’s not just the fact that nobody has won it since the sponsorship revamp back in 2016.

Over the course of three years and 12 matches since the revamp, Celtic have sensationally conceded just three goals in the competition. Only Partick Thistle and Hibernian have notched strikes against them in the competition during that period.

In terms of goals, Celtic have netted a fantastic 34 times in their 12 Betfred Cup games. You would fully expect Lennon’s men to add to that stat in impressive fashion this season.

The last-16 ties will take place on the weekend of August 17/18, according to the official SPFL website. By that point, Celtic will already have played two Premiership matches and will hopefully be preparing for their Champions League playoff round tie.

So it’s another positive sign that the season is nearly upon us. And, as always, hopefully the Bhoys get a home tie to continue the momentum and keep travel as minimal as possible with Europe to consider.