Celtic will surely be looking to build on their win against Sturm Graz from a couple of weeks and add three more points to their tally in the Europa League. Next up for them is an away trip to take on FC Midtjylland, not the easiest task by any means. We have seen the Hoops fail against them in the not-too-distant past.
That being said, there seems to be a newfound confidence at Celtic since Martin O'Neill was brought in as interim manager following Brendan Rodgers' resignation. They won the manager's first game back, 4-0 against Falkirk. That was followed by a 3-1 win over the Rangers. Things have certainly got off to a better start than most would have expected.
So, do not count Celtic out going into this game, despite their poor form this season. But unfortunately, they have been handed a double blow right before the contest.
As reported by The Scottish Sun, it was hoped that Alistair Johnston and Kelechi Iheanacho would return in time for this game. But O’Neill has confirmed that neither will make the Midtjylland match.
Celtic double blow confirmed for FC Midtjylland game
Both Johnston and Iheanacho got injured in the aforementioned match against Sturm Graz. The positive is that they did not turn out to be long-term issues and they seem to be close to their returns to the pitch.
The same cannot be said about Cameron Carter-Vickers. The American seemed to pick up a late injury in that very same game and is expected to be out for three to five months, if not longer than that, having undergone surgery.
On paper, Celtic are not going into this game with a strong squad. That being said, we don't really know what a lot of these players are capable of. For example, Johnny Kenny has scored thrice in two games under the management of O'Neill. Callum Osmand also found the back of the net against the Rangers at the weekend and caused their defence real problems. Neither was getting much of a look in when Rodgers was the manager.