Celtic

Charlotte Cohen
BBC Sport Scotland

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Since joining from Shamrock Rovers in 2021, Liam Scales has made 110 appearances for Celtic across all competitions and has firmly cemented himself as a mainstay in Brendan Rodgers' starting XI.

The Irish defender has started all seven of the Parkhead club's league games this season, while centre-back partner Cameron Carter-Vickers has started six.

Dane Murray has started once in the top flight, Auston Trusty has been missing through injury since a couple of early appearances as a substitute and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey has not featured at all since joining on loan from Manchester City.

We've taken a look at the stats behind Scales' start to the season to see if Rodgers is justified in his loyalty to the centre-back.

Defensively, Carter-Vickers and Scales measure up on almost all metrics but there are a few key areas where the latter has excelled.

In terms of tackles, both Carter-Vickers and Scales have made six so far while the American international has won five to his team-mates' four. However, the pair are joint for interceptions (10) while Scales has made more clearances (45 to 33), headed clearances (29 to 21), all while having faced six more shots than his counterpart.

Scales has won 43 duels while Carter-Vickers has won 33, giving them a duel success rate of 64.2% and 56.9% respectively. In terms of aerial duels, Scales has won 31 from 48 while his team-mate has won 22 of 36.

While the moans and groans from Celtic Park can be heard across the country every time one or other of the defenders passes back to goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, Scales has been putting in the work going forward.

Scales has made 242 forward passes in his seven games compared to Carter-Vickers' 192.

Looking at successful passes into the final third, Scales' 88 vastly outnumbers Carter-Vickers' 54. The Irishman has also made 15 passes into the opposition penalty box compared to Carter-Vickers' one.

Scales has created five chances and three big chances while his regular centre-back partner has created one of each.

Going by the numbers alone, it seems Rodgers has found his star centre-back.

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Former Denmark and Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel admits he has enjoyed the role reversal between him and his Celtic shot-stopping son Kasper.

Schmeichel Jnr joined Celtic in summer 2024 after spells at Nice and Anderlecht, where he won a domestic double, lifting the Scottish League Cup in December 2024 and the Scottish Premiership in April 2025.

The 38-year-old had previously made 479 appearances for Leicester City over 11 years, during the most successful era in the club's history winning the Championship, Premier League and FA Cup.

While 61-year-old Schmeichel Snr had his own successful career - five Premier League titles, three FA Cups, a League Cup and a Champions League to name but some - he says he has been able to enjoy his son's achievements more than his own.

"Once you're in it, you're just in it and you don't feel a lot because you always have to move on to the next part," he told the BBC's Sacked in the Morning podcast.

"There's always a game three days away so you never get time to think about what you've just done.

"You end up winning a championship and then you go back to Denmark, where you'd have international qualifiers for the European Championships or World Cup.

"There's never really any time to enjoy what you've done.

"My son is now doing all the hard work and all I have to do is watch. You get time to really enjoy that."

Kasper Schmeichel followed in his father's footsteps on 2 May 2016 when he won the Premier League title at 29 years old - the same age and on the same calendar day as when his father won Manchester United's first in the Premier League era in 1993.

"When he was on that pitch at Leicester, when they got the Premier League trophy presented to them, that was, as a father, an absolutely incredible moment," said Scheichel Snr.

"They won in exactly the same way that we won the first Premier League with Manchester United - by not playing.

"It was the same round, there were so many similarities, all coincidences.

"I've lifted the trophy and he has been photographed with it so many times, and all of a sudden, our roles are reversed."

Former Celtic youngster Justin Osagie has sealed a dream move to Chelsea just over a year after he was released by the Hoops. (Scottish Sun)

Read the rest of Wednesday's gossip.

St Mirren and Celtic will meet at 20:00 GMT on Saturday 22 November.

The unusual start time at the SMISA Stadium in Paisley is to accommodate live coverage by Sky Sports.

Champions Celtic are to feature in seven of the 12 Scottish Premiership fixtures added to the Sky Sports schedule.

A late goal from Luke McCowan earned Celtic a 1-0 home win against St Mirren on the opening weekend of the season.

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With 38-year-old Kasper Schmeichel's contract remaining uncertain, Celtic are exploring the possibility of signing a new goalkeeper and Scotland's Angus Gunn is eager to join the Scottish champions after being pushed down the pecking order at Nottingham Forest. (Football Insider), external

Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Injury concerns have arisen for Celtic wingers Daizen Maeda and Sebastian Tounekti after they were both left out of the squad for their respective nations on Friday.

Daizen Maeda was missing for Japan's 2-2 draw with Paraguay, while Sebastian Tounekti was absent for Tunisia's 6-0 win over Sao Tome and Principe.

Japanese outlets, external are reporting Maeda's issue was discomfort in his left foot but could return for the game against Brazil on Monday.

Middle Eastern outlet Al Araby, external says Tounekti was missing with a thigh issue that, following scans, was revealed not to be serious and the 23-year-old is likely to be back for Monday's game against Namibia.

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Scottish football's head of referees says that the type of penalty that earned Celtic a last-gasp Scottish Premiership win away to Kilmarnock last month should not be given in future.

Kilmarnock defender Lewis Mayo was penalised for handball by referee John Beaton after a VAR review before Kelechi Iheanacho scored from the spot to secure a 2-1 stoppage-time victory.

The ball struck Mayo after a shot had deflected off team-mate Robbie Deas.

Scottish FA head of referees Willie Collum told the VAR Review Show: "The arm is definitely up, it's unnatural.

"If the shot goes direct here and hits Lewis Mayo in that position and there's no deflection, it's 100% a penalty kick.

"Even in this situation with the deflection, in law you can justify a penalty because of the body shape.

"The law doesn't talk about deflection or close proximity. This is guidance rather than law, which talks about unnatural position.

"However, it's about stakeholders' views and pretty much nobody accepted this as a penalty.

"We've had good discussions with the KMI (key match incident) panel, with clubs and also players and the feeling is this should not be punished going forward.

"So we want to recalibrate in terms of this decision. That, if it's such close proximity and it's deflected, even if the arm's in this position, then we don't punish it.

"But there's a slight caveat to that and that is two key words - impact, consequence. If we put this in the goal-line and the ball's going into the net then it changes everything altogether."

Collum agreed with decisions over other contentious handball incidents in September, saying Deas should not have been punished against St Mirren because his arm was in a natural position.

Long-term Celtic target Sondre Orjasaeter has revealed the Scottish champions failed to agree a fee for his transfer with Norwegian club Sarpsborg 08 this summer before he joined Twente, but the 21-year-old winger would not have signed for them anyway because he believes he is not suited to Scottish football. (The Herald), external

Former Celtic and Sweden right-back Mikael Lustig says he chose to sign for the Scottish champions instead of Fulham and West Ham United when leaving Rosenborg because he could not defend and wanted a more attacking team. (Lundh podcast), external

Read Saturday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Michel-Ange Balikwisha believes he is ready to show his full potential after settling into life with Celtic and adapting to the demands of Brendan Rodgers' side.

The 24-year-old winger has two assists already to his name in six appearances for Celtic since signing from Royal Antwerp in August.

His second, setting up Daizen Maeda's late winner against Motherwell at Celtic Park, gave the former U21 Belgium international confidence as he looks to make his mark in the coming weeks.

"After a good week of training with a positive mindset and confidence, when the gaffer called me on the touchline, I was desperate to come on and help the team to win the game," Balikwisha told club media.

"Arne Engels found me in the space and I crossed it left foot for Daizen, who finished it well.

"It was an incredible feeling with the noise of the fans and, for me, it was as if I had scored.

"I am training hard every day. The sessions are more intense here than where I came from, so I had to adapt.

"Now everything is fine and I hope it continues every day to help the team.

"As the gaffer said, it was not easy at the beginning as I was staying in the hotel, but today everything is sorted and it is time for me to show what I am capable of."

Celtic forward Daizen Maeda, who is likely to miss Japan's match against Paraguay with discomfort in his left foot, says it was his decision to stay with the Scottish champions this summer. (Nikkan Sports), external

Read Friday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Alistair Johnston is "getting close" to a return following the hamstring injury he sustained in Celtic's Champions League play-off against Kairat Almaty.

The right-back was initially told he would be out for 12 weeks after the injury picked up on 20 August but the Canada international insists his recovery has been good without any setbacks.

The 27-year-old is "ticking towards" re-joining his team-mates and could provide a boost to Brendan Rodgers' side following the international break.

"It's been a couple of months since I've been out there but the recovery's been good," said Johnston.

"I haven't had any real setbacks, which has been nice. I've been doing tonnes of work behind the scenes with our medical staff and I'm feeling really good.

"It's been difficult watching all the matches from the side. As a player, that's probably the hardest thing to do, not being able to affect the game and not really feeling like you're completely a part of the group.

"But that's just fuelled that fire to get back as quickly as possible, so we're getting close now. We're not going to put a timeline on it, but I'm feeling really good and I've been keeping well.

"We've checked off all the boxes that we need to check and we're definitely ticking towards getting back out there. I'm just looking forward to getting back out there and being with the team again."

Ajax midfielder Kian Fitz-Jim, the 22-year-old who has had few opportunities to impress since John Heitinga became head coach, would be a perfect fit for Celtic, according to data analytics firm SciSports. (Football Transfers), external

Middlesbrough forward David Strelec, 24, says the Championship outfit and Mexican club Monterrey were his only options when leaving Slovan Bratislava this summer, with Celtic's winter interest having fallen through because of complications over an agent. (Record), external

While only three Celtic squad members' market values have risen compared to Rangers' five in the past 12 months and Celtic's overall squad value dropped by £3.86m, from £118.99m to £115.13m, they are still £24.48m more valuable than Rangers, with the Ibrox squad dropping in value by £216,970 to £90.65m. (Transfermarkt), external

Scotland have been handed a bad omen for the World Cup qualifier against Greece after controversial Norwegian referee Espen Eskas, who has already been in charge of dismal European nights for Celtic and Aberdeen this season, was appointed. (The Herald), external

Read Thursday's Scottish gossip

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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Much has been made of Hearts' electric start to the season, as well as the relative struggles of dominant force Celtic.

The Tynecastle side top the Premiership with 19 points from seven matches, the only blip a thrilling 3-3 draw against Motherwell.

Brendan Rodgers' Celtic are two points back and also unbeaten, but have failed to fire at times in attack with goalless draws against Rangers and Hibs.

But what do the underlying numbers tell us about the top two's starts?

Well, firstly, Hearts' impressive record is no fluke.

Their 16 goals are the most of any side in the top flight, while their 223 touches in the opposition box are only bettered by Celtic.

Derek McInnes' side have had 41 shots on target from 105 total efforts with only Celtic and Dundee United (both 42) having more.

Hearts' goals have come from an expected goals (xG) value of 11.03, which indicates a high level of shooting - a notion backed up by their expected goals on target (xGOT) value of 15.60.

Lawrence Shankland, Stuart Findlay and Alexandros Kyziridis are all outperforming their xG.

Essentially, Hearts' shots on target have been more likely to go in than would be expected from the positions they are shooting from.

Celtic's issue hasn't been creating chances, as their shots on target and touches in the opposition box show.

It has been finishing those chances that has hindered them both domestically and in Europe, as evidenced by the 11 Premiership goals they have scored. Motherwell and Kilmarnock have matched that tally with Dundee United on 12 and Hearts out in front.

Those 11 goals have come from an xG of 14.04, again highlighting a poor level of shooting.

The defending champions have hit the woodwork eight times and their shot conversion rate of 9.7% is eighth in the division.

Their xGOT is 15.88 though, which does suggest impressive goalkeeping performances from opposition teams.

Defensively, both teams perform well with Celtic conceding the fewest goals in the division (three) while Hearts' six against is joint second best with St Mirren.

Kasper Schmeichel has made nine saves, the same as Hearts goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow, who replaced Zander Clark (five saves) between the posts.

The numbers show that Hearts are matching - if not bettering - Celtic in performance as well as results, but only time will tell if they can maintain this level against a side used to staying the course.

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Sebastian Tounekti joins Tunisia as they face Sao Tome and Principe and then Namibia in World Cup qualifiers.

Liam Scales is with Republic of Ireland for World Cup qualifiers against Portugal and Armenia.

Cameron Carter-Vickers has been recalled by the USA for a friendly double-header against Ecuador and Australia.

Marcelo Saracchi has earned his first Uruguay call-up in more than a year, for friendlies against Dominican Republic and Uzbekistan.

Benjamin Nygren is part of the Sweden squad to take on Switzerland and Kosovo in World Cup qualifying.

Kieran Tierney and Anthony Ralston are in the Scotland squad for the World Cup qualifying double-header against Greece and Belarus.

Daizen Maeda joins Japan for friendlies against Paraguay and Brazil.

Kasper Schmeichel is with the Denmark squad to face Belarus and Greece in World Cup qualifiers.

Viljami Sinisalo is part of the Finland squad to take on Lithuania and the Netherlands in World Cup qualifiers.

Tino
Fan writer

For the second league game in recent weeks Celtic pulled it out of the bag with football's most satisfying sight - a stoppage-time winner.

But just as Kelechi Iheanacho's 96th-minute strike sank Kilmarnock, Daizen Maeda's 92nd-minute clincher against Motherwell was again overshadowed by the ongoing tension between the club and supporters.

Don't get me wrong, we savoured the moment for what it was. A late winner is pure joy for any football fan, any time.

Yet once the celebrations faded, attention quickly turned to Monday's much-anticipated meeting between supporters' groups and the Celtic board.

Full details of that meeting are still to emerge, but early signs suggest there's been no sudden silver bullet solution agreed. And nor, in truth, should anyone have expected that to be the case.

After all, knocking on someone's door to tell them how poorly you think they're doing their job rarely ends with everyone clinking glasses and declaring a new era of unity.

Real progress takes time. The first step is proving that meetings like this can happen at all. That genuine dialogue and constructive engagement are possible.

Only then can the door open to deeper discussions and, hopefully, to meaningful resolutions further down the line.

Now, as both sides take stock of what was said, we wait to see what the next steps will be.

Whether that means further meetings, new proposals, or a return to protests by the Celtic fanbase, the coming days should make things clearer.

For the board, the challenge remains. To demonstrate that words about engagement and transparency will be matched by action.

Trust between a club and fans, once strained, isn't rebuilt overnight. But it can be rebuilt if both sides are genuinely willing.

So as we look ahead, the hope is Monday night's meeting wasn't a one-off gesture, but the start of something more constructive.

What comes next may well define not just the tone of future discussions, but the broader relationship between Celtic and their fans in the months and years to come.

Tino can be found at The Celtic Exchange, external

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Manager Brendan Rodgers hopes to continue trying to achieve unity at Celtic with strong performances following a late victory against Motherwell amid off-field difficulties.

Rodgers says he was delighted to be able to share a big moment with supporters as Daizen Maeda completed a comeback against Jens Berthel Askou's side in stoppage time on Sunday to seal a 3-2 win with a diving header.

But there remained clear signs of frustration with the club's board despite a planned meeting between directors and fans due to take place on Monday.

"I'm trying to see if we can pull it together on the pitch, which can help unify everything," Rodgers said after Sunday's match.

"Because it's what Celtic is about. Celtic is that feeling. And clearly the feeling isn't quite right across the club.

"However, on the pitch you have to win and you have to continue to win. And that's why I'm so proud of the players.

"When we went 2-1 down, a couple of misplaced passes, you need to hold your nerve and deal with pressure.

"And the players found that calmness and found that ability to create the opportunities. Then eventually one goes in for us.

"It's amazing for the supporters. Because even though we've only lost once this season so far, it's still been a challenging summer to this point.

"But that's for them and it's for them to enjoy that. Because we thoroughly deserved it."

Winger Michel-Ange Balikwisha delivered the cross that led to Maeda's winner after a slow start to his Celtic career and Rodgers believes the moment will help all of his new signings appreciate the potential at the club.

"I think that's all part of the experience here for those guys to understand," he added.

"The guys who have been around know the difficulties and the pressures that are there. It's that feeling that you get. That's what Celtic is.

"And to win a game against a team that's very well coached in how they play, that was a really good win for us, and it will give them a huge boost."

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Celtic left it late to take all three points at home to Motherwell on Sunday, and they've got one player in my team of the week.

Brendan Rodgers was spot-on to say Celtic are nowhere near the level the fans expect right now. Celtic made hard work of life against a good Motherwell side.

After their underwhelming transfer window almost ironic that one of their best signings was a free agent when the window closed. Kelechi Iheanacho clearly has such a cool head when it comes to putting the ball in the net, allied with plenty of ability.

Three goals in six appearances and a real sense that the best is yet to come from the 29-year-old Nigeria international.

We asked for your views on Celtic's 3-2 victory after being pushed to the limit by Motherwell.

Here's what some of you said:

Jon: Another get out of jail card played. Callum McGregor does not look fit and Kasper Schmeichel should have done better for the first goal. There has to be a massive investment in January or Hearts will win the league.

Peter: We are very poor at the moment. Too many players are way off the pace. But it's another win and three points closer to another title, will take that every day.

David: This Celtic team are papering over cracks by winning games at the moment. We seem void of ideas on the pitch.

Patrick: A messy performance and still out of sorts but important that we showed character to grab the late win, which is all important. Morale should be higher after that, just a shame there's another break to stop any momentum from building.

Cal: Celtic created chances against a well-drilled Motherwell side, but they're still missing the killer instinct that gave us the edge last season.

John: Very patchy performance but the new players are showing real promise.

Greg: A sustained effort and mentality to keep going for the full 90 minutes. We're not functioning round the middle and the link up to the front is not synced but Motherwell set up well and moved it fast. Promising but the next three games are crucial to mount a challenge.

David: Good to see Daizen Maeda get the winning goal. Hope he is back to his usual scoring prowess.

Ray: Big win but more about the manner and positive reaction to it with international break now in place. Substitutions made a difference and true area of focus should be the midfield. Benjamin Nygren has been the only consistent performer. Roll on the green shoots of growth.

Paul: We were miles off our standard against Motherwell. We seem to lack fluidity and rhythm in the team. Hats off to Motherwell, they made it a difficult afternoon. Glad to get the three points, they will prove important as the season unfolds.

Watch the highlights as Daizen Maeda's dramatic late winner secured all three points for Celtic against Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership.

(Available to UK users only)

Celtic and Rangers, along with a number of English clubs, are being linked with 23-year-old midfielder Pierre Ekwah, who has refused to play for Saint Etienne after their relegation to Ligue 2 amid efforts to terminate his contract and allow him to leave for free despite the French outfit activated his £5.2m release clause to sign him permanently from Sunderland following a loan spell last season. (Football Insider), external

Read Monday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers: "Clearly it's a very important win for us. The players showed an unbelievable amount of heart.

"Playing against a Motherwell team who are unbeaten, you can see why and see how they scored three at Hearts and two here.

"But we showed a real strong mentality today and real competitive grit. Even though we're not at our levels we've shown in the past, you still have to win. The guys coming into the game brought an energy, mentality and fitness to the game.

"It was a really good game, credit to Motherwell. Few teams will come here and try to build the game.

"There's no doubt there's a feeling that isn't quite what I would say is the Celtic feeling. We're nowhere near our level, I can be clear on that. However, while your searching for it and looking to grow and settle players in, it's important you win."

On match-winner Daizen Maeda: "For him and his family it's huge. There's no doubt everything in the summer would have an effect on him. We kept him on because he has that ability in the box. So, so pleased for him.

"For four years he's given everything, his heart and soul to this club. Naturally there was disappointment for him [in the summer] and I totally respect that.

"He's still turned up and he's working hard every single game. That there is a special feeling for him."