Celtic V St Mirren at Celtic Park : Match Preview

13 December 2014 13:31
Celtic V St Mirren - view commentary, squad, and statistics of the game live.


Deila will not take Buddies lightly

Ronny Deila is wary about St Mirren despite all the signals pointing to a Celtic win when the Buddies visit Parkhead.

Saints are second from bottom of the Scottish Premiership ahead of Ross County only on goal difference at the start of the weekend's fixtures.

As a consequence, the Paisley club are also looking for a new manager after the departure of Tommy Craig on Tuesday, with Gary Teale moving up from player/coach to interim boss.

Moreover, St Mirren have not won at Celtic Park since in April, 1990.

The Hoops boss, however, believes the visitors may benefit from a change of face at the helm but is looking for the league leaders to replicate the storming start to their 1-0 win against Motherwell at Fir Park last week.

Deila said: "They will get energy of course, that happens a lot of times (when a manager leaves). So we have to perform.

"I am very motivated for this game and looking forward to it because I saw some sparks in the game against Motherwell that we want to see more of.

"We played very well for 30 minutes against Motherwell and we want to keep on the same way but hopefully for longer.

"I know we are going to entertain and hopefully get three points."

Skipper Scott Brown, James Forrest and John Guidetti all return to the squad after missing the 4-3 Europa League Group D defeat to Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday night for various reasons. They could be joined by Mikael Lustig who has recovered from a hamstring injury.

The Scottish champions had already qualified for the last 32 before they flew out to Croatia, with the draw for the next two knockout rounds to be made on Monday.

Deila joked that UEFA would not allow Celtic to be drawn against Legia Warsaw following the controversial clash between the two sides in the Champions League third-round qualifier earlier in the season.

The Parkhead club lost 6-1 on aggregate but took the Polish side's place in the next round after it was discovered that Legia fielded an ineligible player.

"We take what we get but hopefully we get another team," said Deila.

"We have played them - and I think UEFA wants us to meet someone else.

"We have improved since then. Legia were a better team than us but it is a different story now.

"It is going to be exciting but we will see who we get."

St Mirren caretaker boss Teale admits a shock victory at Celtic Park may still not be enough to land him the job full-time.

The Paisley club are in desperate trouble at the foot of the table but could not have it any tougher this weekend as they travel to the east end of Glasgow to face the champions.

Teale is hoping a victory over Deila's men will act as a launch pad for his campaign to be named St Mirren manager on a permanent basis.

The former Scotland winger faces competition for the post from the likes of team-mate Steven Thompson, former Love Street favourite Billy Stark and Alloa boss Barry Smith.

But the 36-year-old knows it will take more than one match to save Saints' season.

He said: "Getting a result would not do my chances any harm at all. It would be some statement.

"But I'm not naive - I know when a manager goes, you usually see a positive result in the next game before things going back to how they were.

"So if we do get a result on Sunday, it may just be that initial reaction that you get nine times out of 10 after a manager leaves.

"Getting a result would be great for the team and great for myself, but really I'm just looking for a decent performance first and foremost."

Midfielder Jim Goodwin will return to the Buddies' side on Sunday but youngster Jack Baird will miss out with a back injury, while Gregg Wylde remains unavailable with a groin problem.


Source: PA