Ross County will have to make do without their first-choice goalkeeper once again when they visit Celtic Park on Saturday.
Ashley Maynard-Brewer has been out for County’s last 3 matchday squads after having an operation on his nose. However, it appears his absence will be extended further as he prepares to speak to his consultant.
That leaves the Staggies having to go with Ross Laidlaw in goal. A goalkeeper who, as experienced as he is, always appears to have a mistake or 2 in him. Laidlaw started County’s first 5 Premiership matches of the season, including one against Celtic. However, after conceding 11 goals in that run, he was dropped for Maynard-Brewer.
Laidlaw has recently been given another fresh run in the team whilst Maynard-Brewer has been on the mend. And Mackay has hinted that’s likely to continue with the latter still not ready for action.
As quoted by the Press and Journal, Mackay said: “Ash is going to speak to his consultant. He had his nose reset, so his breathing was the issue. If we didn’t get it dealt with now, it could have caused him problems in later life.
“It’s very unfortunate, because he was in a great vein of form, and it was a very brave situation he went into for it. He’s not our player, he’s a Charlton player, so we’ve got to respect that.
“What it has done is Ross has gone back in goal and he’s been terrific over the last few weeks, he really has. Great credit to him for how he’s played.”
Celtic will get plenty of joy on Saturday if they keep Laidlaw under pressure
The County back-up stopper will indeed come into this one with confidence. County come to Parkhead with a well-admired 3-game winning streak. Laidlaw has played in all 3 and has only conceded one. Granted, those fixtures came against St Johnstone, Motherwell, and St Mirren respectively.
Celtic Park against a Hoops side that has managed 30 games unbeaten is a different story. He’ll be absolutely peppered with efforts throughout the 90 minutes.
Outside of that, County come into this one with largely a fully-fit squad. The likes of Regan Charles-Cook and Joseph Hungbo will be their main threats. If Celtic manage to keep them out of the game then it should end County as an attacking force on the day.
Defensively they have managed to shore things up. But again, this isn’t something that shows itself when they face off against the best teams in Scotland. Against Celtic, County have conceded 5 in 2 meetings. They’ve also played Rangers 3 times and shipped 11 in those games too.
It all points to a comfortable Celtic win on Saturday. If only football worked like that. Even so, the Hoops should hopefully get the job done, and targeting Laidlaw with efforts would be wise.
It hasn’t shown too much in terms of results yet, but County have been dealt a major blow with Maynard-Brewer’s injury. Here’s hoping it shows this weekend.
In other news, Celtic star Giorgos Giakoumakis’ 2022 form has been brilliantly received in Greece
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
