Celtic have been handed two unexpected injury boosts ahead of their Europa League clash with Celta Vigo on Thursday night. The Bhoys lost their first two games in the competition, leaving them needing to win on Thursday night to avoid finding themselves in a tricky spot with five games to play.
Martin O'Neill's men are coming off a 7-1 win over Hearts over the weekend, so they should be full of confidence, but they have struggled against good teams this season, and Celta are a good team.
The Spanish West Coast side are eighth in LaLiga, and they won't be short of motivation having also lost their first two games, including a stoppage time defeat to Italian giants Juventus last time out.
This is going to be a real test for the Hoops, and while it's not a must-win, given there will be five more games to play, it's rather close to one.
To help matter, Celtic could welcome back two defenders sooner than expected, with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Alistair Johnston both pictured in training ahead of the Celta Vigo clash.
Both were expected to be out until at least the weekend, and that may well remain the case, given training alone doesn't determine match fitness, but it is a boost in any case for the duo to be back with the group.
Johnston has been out since August due to a hamstring issue he picked up in the second game of the season. The Canadian international had a busy summer at the World Cup, and combined with an early start to the season, it may have proven too much for the reliable right-back.
As for Carter-Vickers, he recently picked up a muscular strain and has been carefully managed to avoid the issue becoming worse over the last couple of weeks. With that in mind, it would be a surprise if he started on Thursday night even if declared fit.
But the same will apply to Johnston, especially with Colby Donovan playing well in his absence.
Add us as a preferred source on Google