Celtic have won seven of their last eight encounters with Motherwell, including a famous 3-2 victory at Fir Park in May, without which they would not have won the title three days later. Kelechi Ịheanachọ's 99th minute penalty will forever be apart of club folklore.
However, back in December, during Wilfried Nancy's ill-fated tenure, the Hoops were beaten 2-0 in North Lanarkshire, their only defeat at Fir Park across 22 visits since 2013. This though will not be straight forward so, ahead of Sunday's clash, check out our preview, predictions, team news and TV guide.
Motherwell vs Celtic match info
- Date: Sunday 11 October 2026.
- Kick off times: Midday (local) & 7am (ET)
- Competition: Scottish Premiership
- Venue: Fir Park - North Lanarkshire
- How to watch: Sky Sports (UK) and Paramount+ (USA).
How can I watch Motherwell vs Celtic?
Country | Broadcaster(s) |
|---|---|
United Kingdom & Ireland | Sky Sports Football |
USA | Paramount+ |
International (outside UK and Ireland) | Celtic Player |
Australia | beIN Sports Connect |
Africa | ESPN2 Africa |
Brazil | Canal Gol |
Korea Republic | SPOTV NOW |
Portugal | Sport TV6 |
Bosnia | Arena Sport 1 |
Romania | Digi Sport 3 |
Türkiye | S Sport+ |
Albania and Kosovo | SuperSport |
Greece | MagentaSport 3 |
Motherwell vs Celtic match preview
To put it mildly, when we last saw Celtic, things were not going particularly well. Martin O'Neill's team entered the international break following three successive defeats, all of which were high profile. Two came against fierce rivals Rangers, first demolished 3-0 at Ibrox in the League Cup, also beaten 3-1 by Ferencváros in their Europa League opener at home.
The 1-0 Premiership defeat at Parkhead three weeks ago, in which they rarely looked like equalising after falling behind on the half hour mark, ended the Hoops' perfect start to the campaign. Every big game Celtic have played this season, adding in the second leg of the Champions League play-off against LASK, they have lost, hence why pressure is mounting on O'Neill.
Well, the next fortnight could be crucial. After this visit to Fir Park, the Celts take on Hearts and Hibs in the Premiership, as well as both Benfica and Celta de Vigo in the Europa League. Currently only two points above Rangers at the top of the table, Celtic will more than likely kick off in second place, so cannot afford another poor performance.
Motherwell meantime will fancy their chances of a famous victory. The Steelmen may be down in eighth in the table, but should not be underestimated. Many forecast that Jens Berthel Askou would be impossible to replace, only Alfred Johansson to then start brilliantly, collecting eight points from his first four Premiership matches in charge.
However, since then, the Well have lost three matches on the spin, most-recently beaten 2-1 by Dundee at Dens; Alex Lowry's strike from close-range unable to spark a full scale comeback.
Before this, Motherwell were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Rangers and then demolished 4-0 when Aberdeen visited Fir Park, one of the most shocking results of the season so far. Thus, even though the Well are in horrendous form, they have the quality to cause a struggling Celtic side issues.
Motherwell team news
Alfred Johansson has had three weeks to work with the majority of his squad. Kiwi goalkeeper Alex Paulsen, as well as Canadian Jamie Knight-Lebel, Jardell Kanga with Sweden U21s, Tawanda Maswanhise of Zimbabwe and Regan Charles-Cook of Grenada the only players away with their countries.
Celtic team news
On the flip side, it has been a busy fortnight for many of Martin O'Neill's squad, with ten in action all over the world. Asian Games gold medalist Yang Hyun-jun is back, having missed the last three matches, while Jota featured in a bounce game during the break. He has not been seen since 25 April 2025, rupturing his ACL at Tannadice, but his return will have to wait a little longer.
It'll be interesting to see if O'Neill goes with Sam Johnstone or Viljami Sinisalo in goal, while now a fully fledged Colombian international Camilo Durán is set to lead the line, chosen over Kasper Høgh.
Predicted Line-ups
- Motherwell predicted lineup: Paulsen; Sparrow, Girdwood-Reich, Moormann, Longelo; Hodge, Fadinger, Lowry; Maswanhise, Said, Palmer-Houlden.
- Celtic predicted lineup: Sinisalo; Donovan, Carter-Vickers, Trusty, Tierney: McGregor, Baur, Nygren; Hassan, Yang Hyun-jun, Durán.
- Score prediction: Motherwell 1-2 Celtic.
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