Celtic will take a break from Scottish Premiership action this evening when they face Motherwell in the Premier Sports Cup.
Having defeated Ross County on the road earlier in the competition, the Bhoys face another away trip to Fir Park, taking on the Well for the second time within a matter of weeks.
And with a place at Hampden Park up for grabs, I am sure Ange Postecoglou will be keen to see his side put in a strong performance.
However, with such a busy fixture schedule in recent weeks, the Celtic boss may be ready to ring the changes to the starting 11 and on his substitutes bench.
The 57-year-old showcased that he wasn’t afraid to utilise his whole squad in this competition in the Bhoys win up in Dingwall.
Whilst we are likely to see a lot of familiar names from Postecoglou’s teams throughout the season so far, there is also a chance for a few surprise options.
Whether that be from the start or off the bench at a later stage in the game, tonight’s trip to North Lanarkshire could provide the ex-Socceroos boss with the opportunity to see some more untested names. Here are three players who could be given a surprise opportunity tonight.
Ben Siegrist
The former Dundee United goalkeeper could be in between the sticks in place of Joe Hart, who has been a mainstay in Postecoglou’s team since his arrival.
Siegrist joined the Hoops in the summer and was always expected to play second fiddle to the former England international.
However, his performances for United in the Scottish Premiership have showcased his capabilities to be a more than an adequate backup.
And the Celtic boss has shown he is happy to use the Swiss shot-stopper in cup competition during the last round of the Premier Sports Cup. So, we could be in line for a rare appearance from Siegrist.
Yosuke Ideguchi
Unlike Siegrist, the next two options being discussed aren’t likely to be starters. However, depending on how the game pans out, they could be provided with a surprise opportunity.
Ideguchi has had a frustrating ten months at Parkhead since joining in the January window, with injury issues hampering the midfielder’s progress.
After a solid pre-season, the Japanese international was once again hit with an injury blow following a freak training ground accident.
On Saturday, Ideguchi returned to Ange Postecoglou’s squad and was an unused substitute in the Bhoys’ emphatic 6-1 win over Hibernian.
If the Hoops manage to put the game out of sight at some stage this evening, the Celtic boss may look to utilise the fringe midfielder and save his regular options for a big game on Saturday.
Bosun Lawal
Academy prospect Bosun Lawal is yet to make an appearance for the first team. However, in recent weeks, he has spent the majority of his time training with the squad at Lennoxtown.
As we head into tonight’s game, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Moritz Jenz are expected to be the only senior centre-back pairing available due to injury elsewhere.
Whilst Postecoglou hasn’t turned to Lawal during his defensive injury issues this season, the cup competition could prove to be a good opportunity for the manager to challenge the youngster off the bench.
Lawal didn’t travel with the young Hoops squad to London last night, that were taking part in their first Premier League International Cup match. Instead, training with the first-team squad ahead of Motherwell.
So, it will be interesting to see if he is involved tonight and the number of changes the Celtic manager will make to his squad.
In other news, “Going really well”; On-loan Celtic star reflects on the early positives of temporary exit.
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