Celts & City in Critical Clash
~~~~~~~~~~ Official TC Match Preview ~~~~~~~~~~


Celtic & City go head to head once again tomorrow evening.


New Douglas Park, Hamilton
Friday, 28 March
19.35 GMT​

The Ghirls face a potentially season defining match tomorrow evening, as their hopes of defending their SWPL crown could hang in the balance, when they host the visit of title rivals, Glasgow City.

It has been over 2 months since the last time the Hoops played at home (26 January), and quite a bit has happened since then. Indeed, just a few weeks ago, Celtic were in a 4-way share of the League lead, along with Hibs, Sevco and Friday night's visitors, City, while Hearts were just a couple of points off the pace.

Two defeats later, at the hands of the two Edinburgh clubs, and suddenly the pressure is well and truly on Elena Sadiku and her team, and it is not going to get much easier going forward.

So, they will be keen to finally be returning home in front of their own fans, and hopefully that will help produce the desired effect, to start playing catch up on the teams ahead of them.

Due to a combination of International break and Cup competitions, Celtic, whose only commitments remain in the League, have only played twice in the past 6 weeks, and have not tasted victory since the 6-0 win over United at Tannadice in early February.

So there should be no issues with freshness and there will have been plenty of opportunity for anyone who has been carrying little niggles to get over them. The team has been able to work on the training pitch at the new Barrowfield facilities, but there is nothing like the true taste of genuine competition.

There should be no shortage of motivation or hunger, and in front of their own fans will want to show what they can do when it matters most against one of the toughest teams in the League.


Saoirse Noonan's form has earned her a recall to the Irish NT for the first time since 2023

As for the visitors, they are every bit as hungry to regain the title as Celtic are to defend theirs. City's position of dominance has been under challenge in recent seasons, but they are once again looking to step up, as they also attempt to bounce back from the 1-0 loss to Hibs in the previous round of SWPL fixtures.

Matches involving these two teams have been a very tight affair this season, with precious little between them. Celtic were able to beat City in the League, 1-0, way back in August, and it took penalties to seperate them in the League Cup in November. More recently however, City knocked Celtic out of the Scottish Cup and their most recent SWPL meeting resulted in a 2-2 draw, both of which occured in February.

Of course, both of those games were played out at City's Peterhill home ground, so hopefully a change of venue will see a swing back in the Hoops' fortunes also.

With League leaders Hibs scheduled to play 6th placed Motherwell (who they have beaten twice this season, by an aggregate of 9-0), anything less than 3 points from this City clash and the gap at the top could be as much as 9 points with just 8 games left, and suddenly the race could be slipping out of reach.

Anything less than victory and, while still mathematically possible, there would be very little wriggleroom remaining for Elena Sadiku and her team, who would not only need a dramatic turn in form, but also for fortune to smile if results elsewhere were to go in their favour.

With both teams having a lot to play for and being so evenly matched, the stakes for Friday night's showdown cannot be understated. And if Celtic are to have any hope of defending their title, these are the sorts of tough challenges that they have to overcome, to prove their worth.

Referee: Connor Ashwood


Lucy Ashworth-Clifford in action against City earlier this season

~~~~ 2024/25 Form ~~~~

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

SWPL
L L D W W ~ L W D W L ​