Hoops Host Raith Rovers Return

Hoops Host Raith Rovers Return
~~~~~~~~~~ Official TC Match Preview ~~~~~~~~~~



Jota was on target when Celtic defeated Raith 3-0 in the League Cup in September 2021

Celtic Park, Glasgow
Saturday, 8 February 2025
17.45 GMT

The Hoops resume their quest to defend their Scottish Cup crown tomorrow's late kick off, when they host Championship side, Raith Rovers, for a place in the Quarter-Final draw.

Celtic are coming into this on the back of a comprehensive 6-0 win against Dundee on Wednesday, which featured a number of goals of the highest quality, especially in the second half, and the Bhoys will be wanting to carry that sort of form through this game and into the upcoming Champions League tie with Bayern Munich, next week.

But first things first and as the addage goes, can only play one game at a time.

This will be the first time since 2021/22, when Ange Postecoglou's Celts faced the Fife side. Indeed, the Hoops defeated Raith in both the League Cup (3-0) and the Scottish Cup (4-0) that season, and after the performance in midweek, hopes will be high of a similiar performance abd result.


Daizen Maeda found the net twice in the 6-0 win over Dundee on Wednesday evening

The Kirkcaldy club's 2024/25 campaign has unfortunately not matched their efforts of last season where they pushed Dundee United all the way in the title race. Unfortunately, there has been a number of disruptions in the manager's hotseat, beginning with the self-inflicted and highly unexpected dismissal for former manager Ian Murray just weeks into the season with little apparent cause, to be replaced by Neill Collins.

Despite a 3 year deal, Collins departed just a matter of months later when he was lured away to North America, which lead to the appointment of former Celt, Barry Robson to the post in late December. Throw in a couple of interum stints and it's not difficult to see the impact this has had.

As such, it's little wonder the results on the park have reflected this also, with the Fifers currently sitting in midtable and 20 points off the pace in the race for promotion from the Championship - a far cry from their 2023/24 campaign.

The visitors are coming into this game on the back of a Fife derby loss to Dunfermline last weekend, but just to highlight their erratic form, they knocked out Championship highflying Falkirk in the previous round to set up this match.

It would be a shock to say the least though, if Rovers were to spring a surprise, given that Celtic have won all 6 meetings between these sides since the turn of the century. Indeed, the last time Raith took anything from a game against Celtic was a 1-1 draw in April 1997 - which turned out to be Paul McStay's last ever appearance for the Hoops.

If ever a maxim of 'anything can happen in the Cup', Raith can provide a reason for this, as they caused an upset by winning the 1995 League Cup Final. That said, the Hoops will clearly be favourites going into this tie and should the manager choose to use this game to rotate his squad, it should still be enough to contend with whatever that Rovers will throw at them tomorrow.


Liam Scales scores in the 4-0 Scottish Cup win the last time these sides met in Feb 2022

Stats & Facts​

• Celtic are undefeated at home against all opposition and across all competitions since December 2023 - including winning ... in this 2024/25 season.

• The Bhoys have won each of the past 6 meetings (all in Cups) since Raith Rovers were last relegated from the top flight in 1997.

• In the past 9 games at Celtic Park across all competitions, the Hoops have scored 30 goals whilst conceding just once.

• Raith had the worst disciplinary record (4 reds, 44 yellows) in the Championship prior to Robson's arrival, but this is something he has clearly addressed, conceding just 5 yellow cards in total in the 5 matches since taking over.

Team News​

Brendan Rodgers once again will have no shortage of options ahead of this game, with just veteran winger James Forrest likely ruled out, as he nears a return from a foot problem.

The manager has continued to balance squad rotation with starting XI selection, and it would seem almost certain to continue for this match once again, while also preparing the team to host Bayern Munich in the Champions League next week.

As for the visitors, they will again be without forward Callum Smith (ACL), with January arrivals Jamie Gullan and Aiden Marsh recruited to cover as striking options, in addition to the arrival of defenders Jordan Doherty and George Gitau.

Robson has had just 5 games in charge, so it's no surprise that he is still experimenting a little with regards to formation and lineup to find his best XI, seemingly alternating between a 3-5-2 and a 4-2-3-1 in the past few weeks with varying results.



Referee: Chris Graham

This will be the fourth time overall that Graham has been appointed to a match involving Celtic, with the Bhoys having won on all three of the previous occasions, including twice this season in the League.

Celtic's 0verall Record
M3 W3 D0 L0

VAR: Greg Aitken



Head to Head

Overall
P:90 W:59 D:17 L:14 ​

Last 5 Meetings
WWWWW

2024/25 Form

Overall
W W L W W ~ L W L W L​