We love a prediction here at TCW.

We try to predict Ange Potsecoglou's Celtic starting XI for every game - as regular readers will know, to varying degrees of success.

So we thought 'why not predict some stuff before the season starts this year?'

We've tried to keep these categories relevant to our End-of-Season Awards (which you can read all about here) so it's easier to see who has actually called things right come next May.

So without further ado, here we go...

Top scorer

Sean Martin: Daizen Maeda. I’ve said it often enough on episodes of the Celtic Briefing over the past few weeks that I can’t pick anyone else. I’ve backed myself into a corner. But I do think it’s got merit – he will arguably clock the most minutes of the first-choice forwards and has an eye for goal.

Tony Haggerty: Giorgos Giakoumakis. Feed the Greek and he will score. It's as simple as that. He is certainly in no mood to relinquish his league-scoring crown and wants to win the trophy outright this season. You can only wonder if Giakoumakis will break with tradition this term and take more than one touch to bury the ball into the back of the net.

Alison McConnell: Giorgos Giakoumakis AND Kyogo Furuhashi. Gave this considerable thought and the end result is a shared award. Kyogo and Giakoumakis both look certain to hit a minimum of 20 goals apiece, assuming both stays fit over the course of the campaign. Kyogo looks to have the starting shirt at the minute but Giakoumakis will get plenty of game-time. A tie between the two.

Most assists

Sean Martin: Matt O’Riley. I have been waxing lyrical about both the Denmark Under-21 international and Reo Hatate all summer – both possess the vision and the cheek to spot and try dangerous passes and either could have been my choice here. I’ve gone O’Riley due to his set-piece responsibilities.

Tony Haggerty: Reo Hatate. Three players immediately spring to mind and that's Hatate, Matt O'Riley and Jota. If pushed I will say Hatate, who looks like he has come back fully refreshed after the summer and ready to make a significant contribution to the Celtic cause.

Alison McConnell: Jota. Liel Abada is no slouch when it comes to being a provider or a scorer but early indications are that Jota will hog the limelight in terms of the assists. The winger does not appear short of confidence and after a summer in which his popularity among the Celtic support was made clear as they clamoured for his signature on a permanent contract he looks to have a clear spring in his step.

Signing of the season

Sean Martin: Jota. A cop-out? Absolutely (and I’ve got previous for that if you cast your mind back to my selection for this very category in the End-of-Season Awards). Yet technically – technically ­– Jota is a new signing. I think he’ll be every bit as influential as he was last term and generally outshine the six other summer acquisitions.

Tony Haggerty: Jota. This is easy. It is going to be Jota. He will entertain, he will score goals and he will assist in the scoring of goals. An old-fashioned winger and entertainer who plays football (dare we say it)... the Celtic Way!

Alison McConnell: Aaron Mooy. This is an interesting one. Based so far on pre-season line-ups, it will be a challenge for anyone to push their way into what is an established starting line-up. My money would be an Aaron Mooy exerting some influence this season in the middle of the park although Alexandro Bernabei could also expect to be up there.

Celtic Way:

Most improved player

Sean Martin: James Forrest. Bit of an odd one? Maybe. But I’m selecting Forrest on the proviso that he stays fit for most of the season. In that situation, I reckon he makes some big contributions as a rotation piece and thus materially improves on his 2021-22 campaign as a result.

Tony Haggerty: Daizen Maeda. The Japanese wide man does not need to improve his game by all that much as he already possesses a real work and team ethic. That being said, I think the area he will drastically improve is his goal ratio. Maeda will add plenty of them this season and could run Kyogo Furuhashi and Giakoumakis close for the top scorer prize.

Alison McConnell: Yosuke Ideguchi. Whoever takes the title may fancy a few lessons from Anthony Ralston after the manner in which he turned his Celtic career around last season. Not sure if counts as an improvement given injury and lack of game opportunities were the issue since his arrival but Yosuke Ideguchi, once he is back up and running, could catch the eye this term.

‘12th man of the year’

Sean Martin: Liel Abada. I don’t see the Israeli getting anywhere near as many starts as he did last term due to the relative depth in the forward line Ange Postecoglou now has. He showed in pre-season he’s hungry for minutes and as such he’ll have to make the most of what game-time he does get – telling contributions from the bench and as a rotation option could be the order of the day for the 20-year-old.

Tony Haggerty: Liel Abada. The Israeli scored 15 goals last season but I think he may have to be content this campaign with being an impact player and regular substitute. He has what it takes to be a potent weapon off the bench and he will look to make a telling contribution each and every time he is given minutes on the field.

Alison McConnell: James Forrest. James Forrest. Criminally underrated, the winger has not had recent injury issues to seek. However, he retains a knack for popping up with important goals – last season’s League Cup semi-final, anyone? – and assists and has the temperament for the big occasion. He might not start as many games as he would like but clearly has ample to offer.

TCW Player of the Season

Sean Martin: Jota. His output is ridiculous; his underlying stats are superb; his dribbling catches the eye; he constantly plugs away no matter the physicality he’s faced with. The Portuguese was runner-up in our inaugural power rankings last season but I think he’ll go one better this time.

Tony Haggerty: Matt O'Riley. The Denmark under-21 midfielder is a class act. His one and two-touch football is a joy to behold at times and this season we will see the real O'Riley come to the fore. I can see him playing a starring role in the Champions League group stages as well as booking himself a seat on the plane to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup finals with Denmark.

Alison McConnell: Callum McGregor. Celtic’s Mr Steady rarely dips in levels of performance and has set the tone for the Ange Postecoglou era. Reliable, consistent and always available, McGregor will be the driver for the Hoops again this term.