Celtic commence their quest to win a 23rd Scottish League Cup, having featured in eight of the last ten finals, winning seven of them, albeit St Mirren did upset the odds last December. Given that the second round draw was seeded, the Hoops could have been up against lower-league opposition such as Inverness Caley Thistle, Stenhousemuir, Dunfermline or Partick Thistle.
Thus, this is certainly one of the hardest draws that Martin O'Neill's team could have been handed, so the Celts will need to be at their best to avoid just a fourth exit in the round of 16 or earlier since 1999.
Dundee United vs Celtic match info
- Date: Saturday 15 August 2026.
- Kick off times: 17:45pm (local).
- Competition: Scottish League Cup second round
- Venue: Tannadice Park - Dundee.
- How to watch: Premier Sports (UK) and Paramount+ (USA).
How can I watch Dundee United vs Celtic?
This fixture is live on Premier Sports 1 and the Premier Sports Player in the UK and Ireland.
Elsewhere, the clash is being broadcast on Paramount+ in the United States, beIN Sports in Australia and New Zealand, Sportdigital Fußball 2 in Germany and Austria, Cosmote Sport 1 in Greece and S Sport+ in Türkiye. All non-UK Celtic Player subscribers can also watch the tie.
Dundee United vs Celtic match preview
After making the perfect start to the new Premiership campaign, can Celtic book their spot in the League Cup quarter-finals? The Hoops' title defence began in underwhelming fashion, battling to a 1-0 victory over Dundee; Kieran Tierney's cross headed home by Benjamin Nygren. However, last Sunday, the champions really flexed their muscles, demolishing Kilmarnock 5-1 at Rugby Park.
Kasper Høgh headed home the opener after just 100 seconds, completing a hat-trick in little over half an hour. Benjamin Nygren punished some horrendous Killie defending to stroke home a fourth, before Luke McCowan also got in on the act. So now, this trip to the City of Discovery commences a season-defining ten day period for Martin O'Neill's team. Next up is the two legs of their Champions League play-off against LASK, welcoming die Schwarz-Weißen to Glasgow on Wednesday, before travelling to Linz the following Tuesday. First though, can Celtic avoid a shock League Cup exit?
As for Dundee United, unlike their visitors, they had to come through the group stages of this competition in July. Despite a shock defeat at Links Park against third-tier Montrose, wins to nil over Stirling Albion, Arbroath and The Spartans saw Jim Godwin's team top Group B. Since then, this tie continues a sequence of the Tangerines facing last season's top three, with mixed results to date.
🗣️ “Dundee Utd score the first goal of the new Premiership season!”
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) July 31, 2026
Summer signing Lachlan Rose breaks the deadlock at Tannadice against Rangers! ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/y2F6SmLZGM
On the opening Friday night of the Premiership season, new recruit Lachlan Rose's opener helped the Arab's hold Rangers to a credible 1-1 draw at Tannadice. Last Sunday however, Dundee United were hammered 4-0 by Hearts at Tynecastle. The visitors found themselves two down inside 12 minutes, and the fact that the Jambos racked up an xG figure of 2.15 suggests it could have been even more emphatic. If Goodwin's team defend like that again, they'll be on the wrong end of another hiding.
Celtic though did actually lose both visits to Tannadice last season, beaten 2-1 under Wilfried Nancy at Christmas time and 2-0 in March. Following the latter, their title hopes appeared over, only for O'Neill's team to win seven out of seven thereafter. Thus, they cannot take progression as a guarantee, albeit the Celts are strong favourites to win this tie.
Dundee United team news
Zac Sapsford scored three times during the group stages, following on from his 11 goals last season, so he alongside fellow-Aussie Lachlan Rose will form a dangerous attacking duo. Elsewhere, Jim Goodwin has named near-identical XIs for the Tangerines' two Premiership matches thus far but, following such a heavy defeat in the capital, could he ring the changes?
Celtic team news
Martin O'Neill is expected to be back in the dugout, after a minor procedure in hospital saw him miss the trip to Rugby Park. He will though be without Alistair Johnston, a major blow, after the Canadian picked up an injury last weekend, meaning Colby Donovan will likely deputise at right-back.
Those in attendance at Tannadice could see not one but two new signings. Winger Haissem Hassan and midfielder Mika Baur have both arrived for big fees this week, so will either debut? The other two new recruits Camilo Durán and Kasper Høgh are set to continue in the lineup, with the Colombian attacker shunted out-wide to allow last Sunday's hat-trick scorer to lead the line. Liam Scales is available again, after missing the first two Premiership matches due to yellow card accumulation last season.
Predicted Line-ups
- Dundee United predicted lineup: Walton: Rawlins, Forbes, Esselink, Ferry; Tait, Camara, Sevelj; Randall, Sapsford, Rose.
- Celtic predicted lineup: Sinisalo; Donovan, Carter-Vickers, Trusty, Tierney: McGregor, Engels, Nygren; Durán, Yang Hyun-jun, Høgh.
- Score prediction: Dundee United 1-3 Celtic.
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