Celtic fans are (not so) patiently waiting for news on the striker front.
And so have Hearts, albeit in a very different context.
Ever since Lawrence Shankland had to be withdrawn from their Scottish Cup tie against Falkirk on Saturday, the Jambos have faced an anxious wait.
It has now been confirmed that the surprise Scottish Premiership leaders will be without their captain and talisman for six to eight weeks.
The news could now have ramifications that go way beyond just the showdown clash at Tynecastle this weekend.
Will Celtic win the league without Jota? Let us know in the comments.
Hearts lose Lawrence Shankland for Celtic clash and beyond
It’s a hammer blow for the Tynecastle side, especially given that it’s the third piece of bad squad news they’ve had in the last week.
Last Wednesday, midfielder Beni Baningime was sent off in their win over St Mirren, ruling him out of the Celtic clash through suspension.
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At the end of that game, Cammy Devlin – who had played every minute for Hearts until that point – also sustained an injury that will rule him out for a similar period.
Shankland has scored 11 league goals for Derek McInnes’ side since opting to stay at Edinburgh over the summer, despite running down his contract to the point of free agency.
He scored a penalty in their 3-1 defeat of Celtic at Tynecastle, which ended up being Brendan Rodgers’ final match in charge before resigning.
His Scotland availability will also be on his mind, with the race for places in Steve Clarke’s World Cup squad heating up.
Kieron Bowie, who has been widely linked with Celtic this month, is a direct competitor with Shankland for a seat on the plane to North America.
Bowie looks to be going nowhere for now, as Martin O’Neill’s wait for that elusive goalscoring number nine goes on.
Will we hunt Hearts down and win the title?
Derek McInnes on Hearts vs Celtic
Speaking about the game in the capital, McInnes claimed that his side were the ‘underdog’ for the encounter, despite having the opportunity to move nine points ahead of Celtic.
He said: “The fans got behind the team. It’ll be even better against Celtic because we are the underdog. There’s no two ways about it.
“By the time we play Celtic, we’ll have been at the top of the league for four months. We’re comfortable where we are.
“We’ve got work to do. I believe we can win games. With the help of the fans, they’ve got a part to play.”
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