March will be a season-defining month for Celtic, one way or another, so at least they will go into this crucial period with a bit of confidence. On Thursday night, the Bhoys managed to claim a first-ever victory in Germany, with Luke McCowan the only scorer against Stuttgart. This though was not enough to keep their Europa League adventure going, given that they'd been steamrollered 4-1 in the first leg in Glasgow.
Now though, full focus is on domestic competitions and, well, it is going to have to be. The next two Sundays, Martin O'Neill's team will be at Ibrox to take on Rangers, first in the Premiership and then in the Scottish Cup. There's also the small matter of a trip to Pittodrie to face Aberdeen in between.
So, ahead of a pivotal Glasgow derby against their fierce rivals in Govan, here are three players who should keep their places in the starting lineup after impressing at Neckarstadion.
Viljami Sinisalo
O'Neill made a whopping eight changes in Germany, following the weekend defeat to Hibs, but there was only one that got everybody talking and that came in goal. Since arriving from Aston Villa for £1 million in the summer of 2024, Viljami Sinisalo has found opportunities hard to come by. Thursday was only his 14th appearance, six of which have come in cups, while it was his debut in Europe.
Despite this, the Finnish international looked assured, making six saves and helping the Celts keep a well-earned clean sheet. Of course, we haven't mentioned the important context, which is Kasper Schmeichel's drastic downturn in form. In recent weeks, 39-year-old Kasper has looked more like 62-year-old Peter, at fault for numerous goals, most notably against Kilmarnock and Stuttgart of late.
Many supporters were calling for Schmeichel to be dropped, but were stunned when this actually happened. Pre-match, O'Neill labelled the Dane a "really fine goalkeeper", and there was no suggestion that he was about to bring in Sinisalo, so the decision did come out of left field. Most forecast that Schmeichel will be reinstated on Sunday, but this could prove costly.
Dane Murray
Earlier in the week, Celtic discovered that they had been unsuccessful in their appeal against Auston Trusty's red card. The American international was dismissed by referee Matthew MacDermid, following VAR review, against Hibernian last Sunday for slapping Jamie McGrath's arm as the pair were jostling before a corner. This was deemed violent conduct, and the SFA agreed, meaning Trusty will miss the Premiership matches against Rangers, Aberdeen and then Motherwell.
In his place, O'Neill has limited options, but is likely to go with Dane Murray as Liam Scales' partner. Seemingly with the upcoming league fixtures in mind, Murray was given an opportunity to stake a claim in Stuttgart and didn't really put a foot wrong, racking up eight clearances and three ball recoveries, looking pretty solid.
This was only the 22-year-old's 16th appearance for Celtic, of which only half have been starts, very inexperienced for a player of his age, but he will now need to step up. Given that Cameron Carter-Vickers is sidelined long-term, January recruit Benjamin Arthur, who has even less first-team experience to his name than Murray, is the only alternative. To say a centre-back pairing of Murray and Scales would concern Celtic supporters may be an understatement.
Luke McCowan
Lastly, one area of the pitch O'Neill does have options to choose from is midfield. Captain Callum McGregor will start, because he always does, while top-scorer Benjamin Nygren will also surely return. This leaves one spot up for grabs, with Reo Hatate and Paulo Bernardo hoping to get the nod, but Luke McCowan may have done enough in Germany to jump to the front of the queue.
The 28-year-old bagged the only goal of the night after just 28 seconds, the eighth time Celtic have scored in the opening minute of a European fixture, a new record for any club. This was a rare start for McCowan, given that he's not featured in any of the last five Premiership matches, dating back to 14 January at Falkirk.
Despite this, he looked sharp, completing 88% of his passes and ten carries, registering 40 touches. So, if it is a meritocracy, McCowan will get the nod at Ibrox, but we shall see.