Premiership giants Celtic will be looking to get back to winning ways in the league when they travel to Tannadice Park to take on newly-promoted Dundee United this weekend. The fixture is set to be played out on Saturday night, just a few minutes after the completion of Rangers’ league outing a while earlier. With their last two Premiership outings having been postponed due to the questionable behaviour of Boli Bolingoli, Neil Lennon’s side will be hoping to make a positive return to league action later in the week.
The Celts’ most recent league clash took place more than ten days ago, where they fell to an unexpected 1-1 defeat against Kilmarnock. Ryan Christie’s early goal was cancelled out by a Killie penalty, and despite having more than an hour to try and salvage the situation, Lennon’s men were forced to leave Rugby Park with just a point to their name. The latest fixture that the Hoops were involved in was the Champions League 1st round, where they handed Icelandic champions KR Reykjavik a 6-0 walloping this past midweek.
Team News
The Celts have completed the big-money acquisition of West Ham United’s Swiss striker Albian Ajeti over recent weeks, and the forward was handed his debut by the Parkhead club in the second half of their comfortable European encounter against Reykjavik. Although he didn’t have too much of an impact, it’s likely that he will come good for Lennon’s side in the months to come. Both Jeremie Frimpong and Kristoffer Ajer were rested for the midweek clash, which means that the Celts’ standard back-four is likely to feature from the start for this outing.
Here Is The Predicted 4-2-3-1 Celtic Lineup Vs Dundee United:
Predicted 4-2-3-1 Celtic Lineup Vs Dundee United
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Defence
Having brought him in from AEK Athens a few weeks ago, it’s safe to say that Greek stopper Vasilis Barkas has settled into life in Scotland in a fairly efficient manner. The penalty goal he conceded against Kilmarnock was perhaps a tad unlucky, and he has looked solid since for the most part. Christopher Jullien is expected to continue operating at the heart of the defence, with Kristoffer Ajer set to replace Nir Bitton in the eleven for this tie. While Greg Taylor is likely to keep his place, Hatem Abd Elhamed is probably going to drop down to the bench with Jeremie Frimpong entering the eleven in his place.
Midfield
Scott Brown and Callum McGregor are more than likely to continue as the Celts’ main midfield pivots. The skipper’s largest responsibility is providing direct defensive protection to the centre-halves, and that’s something that the veteran does pretty efficiently even today. McGregor, on the other hand, has the license and ability to use his superior dribbling skills and vision to make things happen in the final third of the pitch. As a combination, the duo has more than enough quality to control the tempo of the game from midfield, and it’s hence highly unlikely that either of them gets dropped for this tie.
Attack
James Forrest and Mohamed Elyounoussi are likely to retain their places as the wide-men for this clash against Dundee United. The latter had what was arguably his best ever game in a Celtic shirt in midweek when he absolutely ripped the Reykjavik defence to shreds. Forrest though didn’t have the impact he might have been hoping for, and will hence be eager to make up for it. Despite Ajeti’s debut, Odsonne Edouard is expected to continue leading the line for this tie, with Ryan Christie taking up the number ten role and providing direct support to the centre-forward.
