Celtic travel to the City of Discovery on Sunday to face Dundee at Dens Park, as they look to move one step closer to a third consecutive league title.

With Rangers playing directly before then versus St Mirren in Paisley on the same day, who knows what the league table will look like when Celtic take to the field in Dundee at 3 pm on Sunday? Admittedly, previous meetings with their opponents this season have been pretty much one-way sailing, at an aggregate score of 13-1 in favour of Brendan Rodgers’ side.

Back on Boxing Day, Celtic won 3-0 at Dens Park – Sunday’s location – whilst they hammered Tony Docherty’s team 7-1 at the end of February at Celtic Park. They also defeated them 3-0 back in September – again, in Glasgow - so Sunday’s opponents have not had the best time of it versus the current champions this season.

With this being the first game of the split, Rodgers and his squad will be looking to get off to the best start with a good performance and result. The question is: who will start for Celtic on Sunday? The Celtic Way’s Ryan McGinlay and Tony Haggerty each have their say…

Ryan McGinlay

Despite how up and down this season has been, it finally feels as if Celtic are in a good place concerning both their squad and their current form.

Yes, last Saturday at Hampden was chaotic to say the least, but the club are in the driving seat when it comes to reclaiming their Premiership throne once again. With almost a clean bill of health to pick from, Rodgers can name a really strong team to take to the field for this one. It is time to grab the bull by the horns and make sure this league title is delivered once again.

In goals, it will be the final stop in Dundee for the farewell tour of Joe Hart, as he will take up his usual spot in between the sticks for Celtic once again. Here’s hoping he can secure a second double of his Celtic career to bow out in glittering style as a professional.

The defence will have three unchanged starters from last weekend, as the imperious Cameron Carter-Vickers will be joined by Greg Taylor and Alistair Johnston at left and right-back respectively. I have sung his praises this season, but for the good of the team, Liam Scales must be dropped by Rodgers at Dens Park. He was caught out twice versus Aberdeen in stoppage time and extra time by the same ball and cannot continue to be handed starts at this stage. It is time to see what Maik Nawrocki has at his disposal for the next six games, so he will start from here on in until the end of the season.

In the midfield, Callum McGregor will be a further eight days on in his recovery, with the captain starting again in the number six role in place of Tomoki Iwata, who can feel hard done by again, in truth. Reo Hatate must start – and he will – alongside Matt O’Riley in the more creative areas of the engine room. Both will be relied upon to make things happen, both by providing and scoring goals from now until the end of the season. Paulo Bernardo also has a say in this season, though it will have to be from the bench for the moment, at least.

In the attacking areas, there is a temptation to stick Adam Idah up front – particularly away from home – but I cannot look past Kyogo Furuhashi. Despite not having the best of seasons, he can shoot Celtic to the title by scoring in the next six games, cementing himself as a club great in the process. At right-wing, Nicolas Kuhn will continue to be deployed after scoring last week, whilst James Forrest will start on the left. Forrest has to start after last week’s influential showing from off of the bench, as Luis Palma and Yang Hyun-jun both struggled last week at the National Stadium.

With Celtic gunning for the title, expect the visitors to come out flying. Rodgers’ side to win by a few on Sunday.

Ryan’s team: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Nawrocki, Taylor; McGregor, Hatate, O’Riley; Kuhn, Kyogo, Forrest

Tony Haggerty

It's down to the 'Famous Five'. The five games that will decide the destination of the Scottish Premiership title.

Celtic traverse the road and miles to Dundee as they take on Tony Docherty's side. The equation is a simple one for the champions - win. The current aggregate Premiership score against the Dark Blues in the three fixtures between the sides stands at 13-1 in Celtic's favour.  The 7-1 dismantling of Sunday's opponents in February at Celtic Park is one of the few highlights of Rodgers's reign thus far.

There is joy and goals to be had for Celtic this weekend assuming they bring their 'A' game to the table. Rodgers's men displayed some shaky defending against Aberdeen at the national stadium last weekend but still prevailed in the end on penalties. The Northern Irishman will know that his charges will need to be switched and fully concentrated on the job at hand to achieve another success against the Taysiders. Rodgers must now address the elements of the Scottish Cup semi-final that he promised his side would learn from during the title run-in.

The elite-level manager has a variety of selection dilemmas in every department but this is where he will earn his corn as he attempts to steer Celtic over the line and make it three in a row. The countdown has begun in earnest to the end of Hart's career and he will be between the sticks for this one. He will be ably assisted by Johnston and Taylor in the right and left back positions respectively. 

The centre of the defence is where Rodgers will need to focus his attention. It is an area that the Celtic manager doesn't like to chop and change although the smart money should be on Scales being removed from the firing line in place of Polish defender Nawrocki. It could well be Nawrocki's final throw of the dice to convince Rodgers that he still has a future at the club beyond this season.Scales failed to convince after an erratic error-strewn performance at Hampden Park and Nawrocki would be the logical like-for-like swap to sit in alongside Carter-Vickers.

In midfield, McGregor will have had a further eight days of training under his belt and he will be called upon to go into battle at Dens. The skipper will form an engine room trio alongside Hatate - who had a quiet game by his high standards at Hampden Park - and O'Riley who is recapturing his early-season form.

Up front the case has been made for Forrest to start by yours truly and he will be rewarded by featuring on the left wing for the champions. Kuhn who scored the equaliser at the national stadium against the Reds will be deployed on the right with Kyogo leading the attack. The Japanese striker likes a goal against Dundee and has plundered six goals in six outings against them since he joined Celtic. You wouldn't bet on the talisman netting a 'Magnificent Seven', would you?

Celtic to win by three clear goals and stay out in front at the top of the Scottish Premiership tree with four to play.

Tony's team: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Nawrocki, Taylor; McGregor, Hatate, O'Riley; Kuhn, Kyogo, Forrest.