Former Kilmarnock goalkeeper Cammy Bell says Celtic will not be looking forward to facing his former side on Saturday.
Listen to more on the Scottish Football Podcast
Greg Taylor has trained all week and will be back in the squad for Saturday's game. Still no Cameron Carter-Vickers or Alistair Johnston but Brendan Rodgers is hopeful of having them back in the next week or so.
Robbie Deas is still missing for Kilmarnock but Derek McInnes says he'll hopefully be back in training next week having been fitted with a mask. Brad Lyons and Kyle Magennis are also still missing.
Image source, SNS
Image source, SNSCeltic have lost just one of their last 82 home matches against Kilmarnock in all competitions (W64 D17), and are unbeaten in their last 17 (W14 D3) since a 0-2 league defeat in October 2012.
Kilmarnock have won two of their three previous meetings with Celtic in all competitions this season (L1), as many as their previous 33 clashes prior to this (W2 D5 L26).
Celtic have won each of their last four home matches across all competitions by a combined scoreline of 10-1, keeping three clean sheets across those four matches.
Kilmarnock have lost just one of their last six away matches in the Scottish Premiership (W2 D3), keeping a clean sheet in four of those six matches. In fact, only Rangers (four), Celtic (eight) and Hearts (10) have conceded fewer goals on the road in the competition this season than Kilmarnock (14).
New Celtic signing Adam Idah has been directly involved in three goals in his two Scottish Premiership games this season (two goals, one assist). He has never either scored or assisted a goal in three consecutive senior league appearances.
Kilmarnock safely saw off League 1 Cove Rangers to progress to the Scottish Cup quarter-finals last time out.
They'll be looking to keep their momentum going when they tackle league leaders Celtic on Saturday afternoon.
Who would you like to see in the starting line-up? Pick your team here.
Image source, SNSLewis Irons, BBC Sport Scotland
Derek McInnes has warned against complacency as his side look to cement their place in the Premiership top six with eight games to go before the split.
Kilmarnock's nearest competitors will be hoping to move closer to the Ayrshire club this weekend when they visit league leaders Celtic, but the manager says they have enough to shock the champions for a third time this season.
"Since we’ve come back from the break I think performances could do with improving, but we’ve still had results," McInnes said.
"I think it’s important for my players that they get the message from me – we’re eight games away from the split and, while we’re happy with where we are at the minute, we can’t feel like we’ve done enough and tiptoe and try and hope to get in to the top six. It’s the team that finds form now that will get in to the top six.
“Top six would be a huge achievement. From where we were two years ago and where we were last season, it would demonstrate a lot of good work from everybody at the club. But we’re not there yet and it’s important that we don’t think we’re there yet.
"As good as we are sitting in fourth, you see how tight the league is, the top three probably have that cemented - well they have - but every team down to tenth will have that wee inkling that they can get top six.
"That in itself tells you there’s work to be done and we know we have a few more wins to get. Now, the likelihood of us getting that on Saturday, most people will think that won’t be the case at Celtic Park.
“For us we just need to focus on ourselves, concentrate on our performance and hopefully try and upset the odds and try and have that big performance in us that we’ve shown already this season to beat Celtic a couple of times – albeit not at Celtic Park – to go and get a positive result.”
Image source, SNSLewis Irons, BBC Sport Scotland
Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes has been speaking to the media ahead of his side's trip to Celtic Park on Saturday.
Here are the key lines...
His approach to tackling the league leaders is to be a "salesman" to his players and get them to believe in the possibility of causing an upset. Stresses that there must be a balance between defence and attack, but they're not going there to come away with "a 1-0 defeat and shake hands".
Believes "tactics can be overplayed" in these fixtures, saying "individual moments" can often prove decisive. Relishes these occasions and enjoys that his staff have to "work harder" to find advantages.
Warns against "tip-toeing" into the top six. Says performances since the winter break "could improve" and it's important they raise their level to ensure they fulfil their ambitions.
Excited about the prospect of facing former club Aberdeen and Neil Warnock in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals, but stresses his squad must be in good form heading into the tie.
Kyle Magennis will miss the rest of the season with the hamstring injury he suffered in December. Brad Lyons may make a return before the split, while Robbie Deas has been fitted with a mask for his facial injury and is expected to return to training next week.
Image source, SNSKyle Magennis' hamstring injury is expected to keep the Kilmarnock midfielder out for the rest of the season.
The 25-year-old has played 14 times for the Ayrshire club since joining from Hibs in the summer, with his last appearance coming in the goalless draw at Livingston in December.
Elsewhere on the fitness front, Robbie Deas is to return to training next week after having a mask fitted for a facial injury, while Brad Lyons could return before the split, but Derek McInnes admits the midfielder's issue is long-term.
The Kilmarnock manager said: “Robbie Deas is out, but he has been fitted now for a mask, hopefully he can resume full training next week which is a real bonus. The surgeon was really happy with how it is progressing.
“Brad Lyons and Kyle Magennis are the longer term injuries, Brad we might get back before the split or round about it, but Kyle is likely to be out for the season.”
Sandy Armour, Killie Hippo fanzine
Last week was a big week for Killie with two winnable league games followed by a big Scottish Cup tie.
It would be fair to say we were below par in all three games, but we gained four points and a quarter-final cup spot so we can't moan.
At Motherwell we created next to nothing but ground out a decent point. We were flat against Livingston but managed to grab a late winner then we eased past a spirited Cove Rangers in the cup.
They say gaining points when you are not at your best is the sign of a good team, and the game at Fir Park is one we would have lost last season.
You can see the benefits of our excellent transfer window as we now have a bench that can seriously change games as the win over Livingston showed. We now have a real tough run of games starting at Parkhead this weekend but if we can avoid any cheap defensive errors we may just give the champions a scare.
Listen to the latest episode of BBC Scotland's Scottish Football Podcast here.
Amy Canavan is joined by Rory Loy and John Walker – analyst and host of the Scots Abroad podcast – to discuss all the big talking points in Scottish football.
They give their thoughts on Don Cowie at Ross County, interim managers in general and the Michael Mellon head injury incident.
And, with the Euros looming into view, we take a look at the Scotland squad and assess some of the players hoping to force their way in, including Plymouth Argyle's Ryan Hardie.
Aberdeen will host Kilmarnock in the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup.
The tie will take place on the weekend of 9 March.
John Hughes, who Marley Watkins played under at Inverness, on Derek McInnes "getting the best out of" the winger
Image source, SNSKilmarnock manager Derek McInnes wants to keep "outstanding" Danny Armstrong at the club long-term after the winger scored his sixth goal of the season in the Scottish Cup win over Cove Rangers.
Armstrong, who has also contributed 12 assists this season, is contracted at Rugby Park until the summer of 2025, but his impressive displays have attracted interest from several clubs.
“I’m keen to keep Danny around, I don’t know if he is,” McInnes said.
“Behind any season a team is doing well there are key individuals.
“Danny’s stats don’t lie, he’s a media darling, everyone loves him – he gets man of the match even when he’s bang average.
“His levels have been outstanding since coming into the team.
“He loves it here, he’s really settled here. Whether we can hang on to him beyond the summer, we’ll certainly try because he is a key player for us.”
The win over Cove takes Killie into the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup, and McInnes wants to go further in the competition than last season, when they lost in the last eight.
“Getting into the next round was the most important thing,” he added.
“I don’t care who we get in the draw. We had a tough draw on paper against Dundee in the previous round and a slightly kinder one here at home to a lower-league team.
“But you’d expect a really tough game against any side which has come this far in the competition.
“Our away form has been much better this season so we’re pleased to be involved, to be honest.”
We asked for your thoughts after Kilmarnock booked their place in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 win against Cove Rangers.
Here's what you had to say:
Kevin: As always with being a Killie fan, positives and negatives. Great to be in the next round and overall we deserved to win. However, players looked scared to play the ball forward at times. Lack of movement and urgency made it look like a pre-season friendly. Kevin Van Veen will be important for us and Marley Watkins is exceeding expectations.
Adam: Good result today, nice to see other squad members getting minutes on the park, and Kilmarnock deserved to progress.
Watch highlights of the fifth round Scottish Cup tie between Kilmarnock and Cove Rangers
Were you at Rugby Park to see Kilmarnock through to the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup?
Whether you were in the ground or followed from home, we want to know what you made of the win over League 1 Cove Rangers.
Image source, SNSKilmarnock manager Derek McInnes: “It was a tie we had to overcome and there are plenty of positives, getting boys minutes, the clean sheet and getting into the next round was clearly the most important thing,” he said.
“We get the all important goal just before half-time, the team talk was still the same but in terms of the outcome, I think it knocks the stuffing out of Cove.
“We had better control in the second half, we kept them from our box a lot more, though it still wasn’t without its challenges.
“There were one or two changes who deserved opportunity through their training.
“We move on to Celtic now, that’s one defeat in 12, we’re going along nicely.
“We need a few more wins to get top six and the next time the cup comes round, I hope we go into it on the back of some good league form.”
No wonder the Killie fans have started calling Marley Watkins magic.
The veteran striker has found a new lease of life at Rugby Park, with nine goals for the campaign.
Plenty of chatter in Ayrshire around Kevin van Veen and Greg Stewart, but Watkins' energy and nouse have been real difference-makers for Kilmarnock.
Image source, SNS
