Bhoys Bound For Buddies Battle

Bhoys Bound For Buddies Battle
~~~~~~~~~~ Official TC Match Preview ~~~~~~~~~~


Jamiary: Nicholas Kuhn scored twice in the 3-0 victory when these sides last squared off


SMiSA Stadium, Paisley
Saturday, 1 March 2025
17.30 GMT ​

Brendan Rodgers' Bhoys are once again in Premiership action this weekend, when they make the short trip to Paisley to take on 7th placed St Mirren, on Saturday evening.

The Bhoys are coming off the back of a 5-1 victory over Aberdeen on Tuesday, and are now just a maximum of 6 wins away from securing a 4th straight League title.

While it was not one of the Bhoys better overall performances, and had the Dons brought their shooting boots down from the north-east with them, the scoreline may've been quite different, but the Hoops were clinical with the opportunities created and will be looking for a more complete performance this weekend.​

Daizen Maeda scored 10 gaols in February, including twice against Aberdeen in midweek

While Celtic come into this game having immediately bounced back from the disappointing trip to Easter Road a week ago, Stephen Robinson's side were unable to back up their successful exploits at Ipox, when they visited Tynecastke in midweek.

Indeed, despite taking a first half lead, they ended up being routed, 3-1, and truth be told were perhaps a little fortunate to finish with 11 men still on the park. The Buddies did have a red card downgraded to a booking, but there were other incidents that escaped more serious censure as they adopted a far more physical response to going behind in the second half of that Hearts match.

The hosts are currently sitting just outside of the top 6 as they chase a 3rd straight top half finish, but considering how tight this season's midtable battle is shaping up, every result is crucial. After the Saints face Celtic their remaining fixtures before the split are all against sides currently in the bottom half of the League table.

Even still, it is likely that anything that the Buddies take from this weekend could be seen as a bonus, but they will want to return to winning ways as soon as possible, and no way would be bigger than by going toe to toe with the runaway League leaders.

Stats & Facts​

• The Hoops have won all of the past 7 straight encounters between these sides since Brendan Rodgers return, and are undefeated in the past 11 meetings overall since Sept 2022 (W10 D1).

• St Mirren are undefeated at 'Home' when they score first (W4 D1 L0), however have only managed once to take anything from games when they have conceded first (W1 D0 L6).

Cameron Carter-Vickers in action during the 5-1 win against Aberdeen on Tuesday

Team News

Brendan Rodgers will have close to a full squad to choose from, with only midfielder Paulo Bernardo sidelned with an ankle problem, while James Forrest is working on his fitness in order to be available for the title run-in, but is not expected to be included for this match. ​

As for the hosts, Alex Iacovitti (hamstring), Evan Mooney (ankle) and Conor McMenamin (calf) are all expected to remain sidelined, even though they near a return over the coming weeks, but are unlikely to be risked for this match.

Referee: Matthew MacDermid

Since his debut in 2022, the 31y.o. has taken charge of 42 Premiership games. This is the 3rd time this season that Celtic will have crossed paths with MacDermid, and have won the past 6 straight occasions.

Celtic Overall Record with this Referee
M:7 W:6 D:1 L:0

VAR: Andrew Dallas



~~~~ Head to Head ~~~~

Overall
P: 271 W: 189 D: 48 L: 34​

Last 5 Meetings
W W W W W

~~~~ 2022/23 Form ~~~~

All Comps
W L D W L ~ L W D D L

SPFL
W L W W W ~ L W D L W​