Ross County striker Jordan White has kickstarted the pre-Celtic fighting talk as he claimed their players are planning to make a “big statement” at Parkhead.
Celtic will face off against the Staggies at home this Saturday when we return to Premiership. That comes after tonight’s clash against Dundee United in the Scottish Cup.
County, meanwhile, will have had 2 weeks without a fixture by the time their trip to Glasgow’s East End comes around. That’s due to the fact they’ve already been knocked out of the Scottish Cup.
But Malky McKay’s Highlanders are on a fine run of form with 3 consecutive wins to their name and only 1 loss in their last 8 league games. Naturally then, they’re in buoyant mood, and none more so than White who claims they feel as though they can net against anyone and that they “know” they’re going to create at Parkhead.
As quoted by the Press and Journal, White said: “I think we believe we are going to score in every game – it doesn’t matter who we are playing against. We know we are going to create, and at times that maybe does leave us a bit open at the back.
“They are in very good form. But we believe in ourselves and we are going to go down there to try and make a statement. We saw last season what we can do against Celtic. It’s a different Celtic team than we played last year, so it’s going to be a really tough game. We don’t want to just live in the past. We want to go and create new memories.
“I like the big games, as everybody does. You get the bigger crowds, which gives you that wee bit more adrenaline and buzz. I think everybody enjoys them. You’ve got to try and stay in the game, because a lot of the time you can go there and they can be the hardest games. We’ve got to go there and give ourselves the best chance.”
Ross County come to Celtic Park as confident as they’ve ever been
It’s difficult to remember a time when County have come to Parkhead as buzzing as they are these days. First of all, they come whilst in the top 6. Even though a defeat at Celtic Park would likely send them plummeting back into the bottom half, it’s a major achievement for them to even be fighting at this end of the league table.
In addition to that, their goal record is fantastic given the resources they have at their disposal. County have scored in 14 of their last 15 Premiership matches. Their only blank came away to Hibernian last month. It’s no wonder they’re confident about doing the same at Celtic Park.
Of course, Celtic are one of the 5 teams to keep them shut out this season. County were bossed in a confident 3-0 Parkhead win for the Hoops back in September. Whilst it took a last-gasp Anthony Ralston goal to win it in Dingwall in December. But that’s a highly-different challenge to coming to Parkhead.
Not that County don’t have players we need to be wary of. For this to be comfortable enough, we have to limit the space given to Regan Charles-Cook and Joseph Hungbo. Both are likely to play and it’ll be down to them to provide service to White. If Celtic shut that down, they won’t be a goal threat.
This is also another fixture in which we’ll have plenty of time to prepare for. After tonight’s clash against United, we’ll have 5 days before the Staggies pitch up at Parkhead.
It’s still difficult to see anything other than 3 points for Ange Postecoglou’s men. But even so, County are clearly in an extremely confident mood. We’ll need to be wary of how that transfers onto the pitch.
In other news, Joe Hart explains why the Celtic players have had a “shock to the system”
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
