Celtic defender Liam Scales has shared it’s been a “tough week” for him and his teammates at Lennoxtown getting to grips with last Saturday’s defeat to Hearts.
The Bhoys were soundly beaten at Celtic Park by a 2-0 margin by Steven Naismith’s side.
Booed off the pitch by supporters and criticised in post-match interviews by Brendan Rodgers, it was made very clear to the players that their performance wasn’t good enough.
It’s a very rare occurrence for Celtic to suffer two successive league defeats, so many of these players will be experiencing a new kind of preparation for this Saturday’s fixture at home to Livingston.
Liam Scales calls for Celtic to bounce back
Scales has been one of the side’s top performers this season and he’s called on the Bhoys to get back to top form against David Martindale’s team.
Speaking in a media conference today, the Irishman said [Celtic Youtube]: “It’s tough. It’s been a tough week, just getting to grips with it. We’re getting over it now though. We know we need to bounce back and that’s the main aim. We’re working hard to do that.
“We’ve actually had a week to prepare for this game which is unusual considering the schedule we’ve had. We’ve been using the week well to go over things and fine-tune things for the upcoming games.
“We know it’s not good enough for Celtic. The pressures here, you know you need to win games and anything but a win isn’t good enough. We know that. Obviously, over the course of a season it’s not disastrous. If we bounce back and do well then it should be fine.”
On the mood within the camp, Scales added: “Obviously, you’re down a little bit. But we know we’re still in a good position. It’s in our hands to go and turn it around. As players, we know we’re the guys who can turn it around. That’s the mood.
“We had a couple of days of being disappointed but games come thick and fast. You have to bounce back quickly. The mood’s a bit better now than it was.”
On paper, Celtic should comfortably take care of Livingston. They haven’t won a match since way back in October and travel to Celtic Park with eight defeats and a draw in their last nine games.
However, fighting for their lives at the bottom of the Scottish Premiership, we know that they’ll set up to frustrate and stifle the home attack. Breaking them down will be a challenge.
There is no room for error on Celtic’s part here. No points can be dropped ahead of the upcoming derby against Rangers.
We simply must see the kind of reaction that Scales is calling for.
In other news, 7 big European clubs including Man Utd echo Celtic statement on proposed 3-division Super League.
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