Celtic face St Mirren tonight, as first plays third in the Scottish Premiership this evening in Glasgow.

The home side will be hoping to get back to winning ways, following consecutive draws against Atletico Madrid and Hibernian in the Champions League and the Premiership respectively. Following Rangers’ win against Hearts on Sunday, the gap at the top of the league table has been cut slightly to five points, with both sides in action tonight.

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Celtic will face a team that is very much in form at the moment in the shape of Stephen Robinson’s St Mirren, who are currently just three points behind second place in third position. They defeated St Johnstone 4-0 at the weekend, which spelt the end of Steven MacLean’s managerial stint in Perth, picking up 18 points in just nine games. They will provide a stern test to the champions, that very much is guaranteed.

With all of that in mind, who will start for Celtic and Brendan Rodgers against the Buddies tonight? Our writers have their say...

Ryan McGinlay

Tongue in cheek, of course, but it's a common saying that Celtic are always one bad result away from a crisis. Whilst the draw against Atletico Madrid was a well-earned one looking back on the match, last weekend’s stalemate at Easter Road versus Hibs was two points dropped when you look at the chances Celtic made, particularly at the end of proceedings. With a lot of noise around the club regarding everything but matters on the pitch, Celtic MUST get back to winning ways.

Joe Hart will start in goals as always for the club. A far steadier presence recently than in the opening weeks of the season, his consistency has not gone unnoticed in recent weeks. Hopefully, he can get another clean sheet tonight. Reiterating what was said last week, do not try and fix something that isn’t broken, despite how tempting it is to make changes. As Maik Nawrocki has not made the bench since his return to full training, it will continue to be Liam Scales who will partner Cameron Carter-Vickers in the centre of defence. Rodgers confirmed that Alistair Johnston has recovered from his head knock at Hibs, so he will start at right-back, whilst Greg Taylor will occupy the opposite side.

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In the midfield, that Reo Hatate-shaped hole needs to be filled somehow, as the team struggled without their main source of guile and creativity on Saturday due to his latest injury. Whilst Odin Thiago Holm may be the man to step in his shoes following his return from injury, it will be too soon for him tonight. Therefore, the midfield will consist of captain Callum McGregor, Paulo Bernardo and Matt O’Riley. Bernardo in particular has a job to do tonight, as his place in the team is by far the least secure out of the three midfielders. Here’s hoping he and O’Riley can provide the creative spark to Celtic’s wingers, or get on the end of chances of their own on the night.

Despite having his poorest performance since his arrival from Aris FC, Luis Palma will retain his place for this one. Celtic will be coming up against a well-oiled defensive machine, and speculative shots may be the order of the day on Celtic’s attacking menu. Expect the Honduran to be back on his a-game tonight. The other two attacking positions will be filled by Kyogo Furuhashi up front and Daizen Maeda on the right. Both will be hoping to get on the scoresheet, as Celtic look to get back to winning ways on the night.

If Celtic are purring, then scoring goals will come naturally to this team. Celtic to win by three on the night.

Ryan’s team: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Taylor; McGregor, Bernardo; Maeda, O’Riley, Palma; Kyogo

Tony Haggerty

It broke last Saturday at Easter Road, didn't it?

The 0-0 draw was not the required result for Celtic as the lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership was reduced to five points. Now what does Rodgers do to fix it against St Mirren? Freshen it up? As the Northern Irishman said in his pre-match press conference, there won't be wholesale changes, but there may be some tweaks to the starting XI to face the Buddies.

In goal will be Hart that's a given. The back four will also stay the same with Johnston coming back into the side after receiving a nasty whack on the temple following Rocky Bushiri's clearance. Taylor will start at left-back with Carter-Vickers and Scales on the right and left side of central defence respectively.

In midfield, the manager has a dilemma but will opt to keep Paulo Bernardo in situ alongside  McGregor and O'Riley. The Portuguese under-21 international did look 'leggy' as his manager said at Easter Road but he is getting to grips with the hustle and bustle of Scottish football and showing increasing signs of enjoying it. Norwegian Holm is on the mend and back to full fitness and whilst he may offer the guile, craft and ability to break the lines more akin to Hatate, he will start this on the bench, but he will gain valuable minutes at some point as the manager recognises there is a talented player within him just waiting to be unleashed.

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That leaves the attack-minded players and one can see James Forrest coming in for Maeda on the right wing. Evergreen Forrest has looked lively in his recent cameos and the manager likes to sing his praises. Forrest's reward could well be a starting berth against the Saints. Palma will be deployed on the left wing despite a drop in his level of performance at Easter Road. Kyogo will lead the line as always as Celtic attempts to get back to winning ways after two successive draws against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League and then against Hibs in the league last weekend. It's over to Rodgers' men to show some sort of reaction against Robinson's side after letting their high bar domestic standards slip in the capital. Will St Mirren cop the Celtic backlash? 

Tony's team: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Taylor; McGregor, Bernardo, O'Riley; Forrest, Palma; Kyogo