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3 surprise Celtic decisions Kennedy could make vs Rangers

By StevieMac

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 06: John Kennedy, assistant manager of Celtic looks on during the warm up ahead of the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and St. Johnstone at Celtic Park on December 06, 2020 in Glasgow, Scotland. Sporting stadiums around Scotland remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 06: John Kennedy, assistant manager of Celtic looks on during the warm up ahead of the Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and St. Johnstone at Celtic Park on December 06, 2020 in Glasgow, Scotland. Sporting stadiums around Scotland remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) /
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Although there are no silverware implications on the line, a Glasgow Derby is never meaningless. Despite the league and both cup competitions being over as far as both Celtic and the Rangers are concerned, there is still plenty to play for.

Could we see John Kennedy make some surprising selections for Celtic to secure a win?

Apart from all the usual reasons, the Hoops will want to end the Rangers’ undefeated run in the Premiership this season. And of course, it will be Scott Brown’s last Glasgow Derby, who will undoubtedly want to lead his team to victory.

As reported by the club’s official website, Kennedy spoke about the skipper ahead of the game:

"‘Certainly, going into the game it would be good for the team to collectively pull together to send the team out in a high. He’s been a real iconic figure in these games and it would be nice for him to have one more before he bows out.’"

Does that mean Kennedy will play it safe, select the usual team and hope they can pull it off this time around? Or will he make a few changes in order to secure a win? Let’s look at some surprising moves that the interim manager could make:

Who will start at right-back for Celtic?

Celtic
Jonjoe Kenny, Celtic. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) /

Jonjoe Kenny holds the place currently. But after a decent start to life at Parkhead he has faded and right-back can even be considered as an area of weakness at this point of time.

Kenny seems to be making defensive errors recently. He also gives away fouls allowing set-piece plays into the box, which has been a major weakness for the team this season.

His forward play has not been very impressive either in recent weeks. After getting forward and getting some good crosses played in, in his early matches, he has not done the same often in the last several games. Maybe it is because of how Celtic play but it is certainly an area that needs to be worked upon moving forward.

Thus, could Kennedy opt for Anthony Ralston instead, either to start or as a substitute? Yes, he isn’t the long term answer at right-back, but that’s not a reason not to play him when Kenny isn’t performing well either.

There are certainly some areas of his game where Ralston might even be ahead of Kenny. As a result, could Kennedy spring a surprise against the Rangers at right-back?

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