Maeda To Start | Predicted 4-3-3 Celtic Lineup To Face Motherwell | OneFootball

Ten-man Celtic showed sheer resilience away from home and registered a thumping 3-0 win against Livingston to maintain their supremacy at the top of the Premiership standings. They will now travel to Fir Park and lock horns with Motherwell before hosting Lazio next midweek in a Champions League group-stage encounter.

Motherwell started strongly with 3 wins in their first 4 league games. But the back-to-back defeats against St Mirren and Rangers must have derailed their momentum ahead of locking horns with the champions of Scotland. Having said that, gaffer Stuart Kettlewell is hopeful of grabbing a result as he referenced Kilmarnock’s famous League Cup win to eliminate the Hoops just over a month back.

Defence

Joe Hart received a marching order last gameweek and will miss their North Lanarkshire trip. Scott Bain should step in and make it count between the sticks.

Nat Phillips was brought on loan from Liverpool to cover the injury crisis in the heart of the backline. But he himself is struggling with an ankle sprain and the Celtic chief Brendan Rodgers must not rush his return given the upcoming European contest. Liam Scales and Gustaf Lagerbielke are likely to feature in the heart of the backline amid the absence of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Stephen Welsh, Maik Nawrocki and Yuki Kobayashi. Left-back Greg Taylor must get the nod over Alexandro Bernabei, also, Alistair Johnston is expected to continue as the right fullback even though Anthony Ralston is waiting patiently for his opportunity.

Feyenoord’s Luka Ivanusec (L) vies with Celtic’s Liam Scales (R) during the UEFA Champions League Group E football match between Feyenoord and Celtic FC at the Feyenoord Stadium in Rotterdam on September 19, 2023. (Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP) (Photo by JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images)

Midfield

The return of Reo Hatate has cost David Turnbull his starting status as a ‘number 8’. The Japanese midfield ace must start the game alongside Matt O’Riley, and the pair would be protected by skipper Callum McGregor with his profound experience and expertise as a deep-lying playmaker. Odin Thiago Holm, Tomoki Iwata, Paulo Bernardo, as well as Turnbull, could get involved as the second-half substitutes.

Attack

Kyogo Furuhashi had a rare occasion when he failed to find the net despite his side’s 3-0 victory. He would like to be back on the scoresheet this weekend while sperheading the attack. Daizen Maeda must operate from the left, and we might see Luis Palma returning to the starting XI after being dropped for James Forrest in the previous game. With Liel Abada and Marco Tilio still sidelined, Yang Hyun-Jun and Oh Hyeon-gyu could be introduced as ‘super subs’ to offer more firepower high up the pitch.