Brendan Rodgers’s side are aiming to extend their perfect start to the Scottish Premiership season on home soil
Celtic play host to Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership at Parkhead on Wednesday, having been toppled from the summit of the table at the weekend.
Brendon Rodgers’s men surprisingly went down 2-0 against Hibs at Easter Road, falling behind both Rangers and Kilmarnock in the standings.
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They have won only one of their last four matches and were held to a 1-1 draw by the Well only a fortnight ago.
The Steelmen are out to upset the Bhoys once more as they attempt to push decisively away from the relegation zone.
| Game | Celtic vs Motherwell |
| Date | Wednesday, December 19 |
| Time | 7:45pm GMT / 2:45pm ET |
In the United States (US), the game can be streamed live online via Celtic TV.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | Celtic TV |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will not be broadcast live.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | N/A |
| Position | Celtic squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Gordon, Bain, Hazard |
| Defenders | Izaguirre, Hendry, Simunovic, Gamboa, Boyata, Lustig, Benkovic, Ralston, Tierney |
| Midfielders | Brown, Sinclair, Hayes, Morgan, Rogic, Ntcham, Mulumbu, Ajer, McGregor, Forrest, Johnston, Kouassi |
| Forwards | Griffiths, Christie, Edouard |
There is a relatively familiar list of problems for Brendan Rodgers to juggle ahead of the visit of Motherwell. Problems could surface at full-back, where both Mikael Lustig and Kieran Tierney are doubtful.
Dedryck Boyata, Nir Bitton and Ryan Christie are the most notable injury problems, while Leigh Griffiths remains on leave of absence.
Possible Celtic starting XI: Gordon; Lustig, Benkovic, Simunovic, Tierney; Brown, McGregor; Forrest, Rogic, Sinclair; Edouard
| Position | Motherwell squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Carson, Gillespie, Ferguson |
| Defenders | Hartley, Aldred, Mbulu, Dunne, Taylor-Sinclair, Tait, Donnelly |
| Midfielders | Campbell, McHugh, Grimshaw, Rose, Bigirimana, Gorrin, Turnbull, Cadden, Frear |
| Forwards | Tanner, Bowman, Samman, Main, Newell, Johnson |
Motherwell will be without key man Chris Cadden for this clash, while Trevor Carson, Liam Donnelly and Craig Tanner are also missing.
Peter Hartley is unlikely to play.
Possible Motherwell starting XI: Gillespie; Aldred, Mbulu, Dunne; Grimshaw, Campbell, McHugh, Turnbull, Tait; Johnson, Main
Celtic are massive 2/11 favourites to win according to bet365. Motherwell are rated 14/1 to win and a draw is available at 11/2.
Click here to see more offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has challenged his players to finish 2018 strongly, despite a year that has seen his team play an astounding 66 matches thus far. Four more games are still to come, with Dundee, Aberdeen and Rangers following the midweek clash with Motherwell.
Thereafter, the Hoops will have a couple of valuable weeks to rest up before it all begins again, with the challenge of Valencia in the last 32 of the Europa League one of the great attractions in the spring.
They may lie third in the league prior to the midweek fixtures, but Rodgers retains a steely confidence in his men to get the job done.
“It’s an important period now,” he said. “We’ll get a break after that, which the players clearly need.
“We’ll be at the top, or somewhere about it, by the turn of the year. We know we’ll get stronger. We know we’ll get better.
“We’ll push on into the second half of the season really motivated.
“But we need to go into our next two home games, starting with Motherwell, looking to get maximum points.
“The players have been amazing for me. Now we have to kick on and put that hunger into action.”
Celtic have been perfect at home in the league this season, winning all seven of their fixtures, but have dropped points in six of nine away trips, including a 1-1 draw with Motherwell at the start of the month.
Danny Johnson’s 88th-minute strike gave Steve Robinson’s side a share of the points on that occasion, while a 2-1 win over St Johnstone at the weekend will have further boosted spirits ahead of this challenging trip.