Ross County

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Ross County defender Will Nightingale is facing 10 weeks on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury.

The 29-year-old joined the Staggies on loan from AFC Wimbledon in July 2023 and that deal was extended for another year in the summer after a successful spell last term.

The centre-back has made four appearances for County this season, but the Englishman is now set for at least two months out.

The Dingwall side return to domestic action on Saturday when they travel to face St Johnstone in the Premiership.

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• St Johnstone are unbeaten in four league meetings with Ross County (W2 D2), winning as many of those four (2) as their previous 15 against the Staggies beforehand (W2 D8 L5).

• Ross County have only lost one of their last five league trips to St Johnstone (W2 D2), going down 1-0 in November 2023.

• St Johnstone have lost all three of their home league games this season, the only side in the Scottish Premiership in 2024-25 yet to pick up a home point. Since the Scottish Premiership re-brand in 2013, only three sides have lost each of their first four home matches of a campaign in the division: St Mirren (2014-15), Dundee (2018-19), and Dundee United (2022-23).

• Ross County are winless in 20 away league games (D8 L12) since beating Kilmarnock 1-0 in September 2023. Home and away, the Staggies have just one win in their last 11 Scottish Premiership fixtures (D6 L4).

• This will be Simo Valakari’s first game in charge of St Johnstone, the first Finnish manager to take charge of a side in the Scottish Premiership since Mixu Paatelainen with Dundee United in 2015-16. Not since Billy Stark in October 2001 has a St Johnstone boss lost his first top-flight match in charge of the club.

With domestic football making its return this weekend, we want to know what you're looking for from your side.

It hasn't been a straightforward start to the season for Ross County, who have just one win from eight league games.

The narrow defeat to champions Celtic last time out showed promise, but what do you feel needs to be improved between now and November's international break?

Give us your thoughts here, external.

Ross Morren
Fan writer

At the beginning of September, if you had offered Ross County fans five points from the upcoming four matches, most of them would have gladly accepted that offer.

The performances from The Staggies in all four matches were impressive and showed different characteristics.

The victory against Dundee displayed a clinical edge in front of goal and the late comeback against St Johnstone to earn a 3-3 draw showed they're a side who will push the opposition right until the final whistle.

Although Don Cowie's side dropped points from winning positions late on against Hearts and Celtic respectively, they showed a defensive stability throughout the match which very nearly saw them pick up a larger haul of points.

So, how do County continue their momentum gained prior to the international break and continue to build their way into the season?

The Staggies face trips down the A9 to face St Johnstone, St Mirren and Dundee United before the next international break. They'll also welcome both Kilmarnock and Hibernian to Dingwall in-between the trips to Perth and Paisley.

On paper, it looks like a fairly kind run of fixtures. County's home form since Don Cowie took over back in February has been well documented, so they'll be looking at the matches against Kilmarnock and Hibernian as a good opportunity for points.

Away from home, most County fans would be happy with any kind of positive result away to St Mirren or Dundee United. I don't think there's too much between County and either side, so both matches could be quite tight.

The biggest match out of the five in terms of importance is this weekend's trip to McDiarmid Park to face St Johnstone. Matches between the two sides feel vitally important after the end to last season, and a victory for County would send them 6 points clear of the Perth side.

The points gained from the next five matches could shape County's season. If they pick up a good haul of points, they could start aiming up the table rather than battling at the bottom like previous seasons.

Ross Morren can be found at The County Corner, external

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The Scottish FA's key match incident review panel have decided that two calls during Celtic's 2-1 win over Ross County were overturned correctly following VAR intervention.

No penalty was initially awarded when the ball struck Liam Scales, but the panel agreed that the Celtic centre-half's arm was high and outstretched, making his body unnaturally bigger.

When Ronan Hale's spot-kick was saved by Kasper Schmeichel, there was no signal from the assistant referee for the Celtic goalkeeper being off his line.

However, the panel supported the VAR's decision to intervene and award a retake, from which the striker scored.

BBC Scotland chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your questions.

Ron asked: Is it conceivable that a Scotland manager would ever consider picking a player from a Highland club? Ross Laidlaw would seem to me to have as good a claim as many other goalkeeper, but never appears to be in the frame. Is it because he plays for County?

Tom answered: Hi Ron. I won’t try to second-guess Steve Clarke on this, but I can understand why you might be frustrated given that Robby McCrorie is in the squad despite having just played his first games since mid-August, which brought his total number of matches to around 14 in three-and-a-half seasons. It's not a lot to go on.

I can't ever remember Laidlaw getting a mention before, which seems harsh. Maybe you're right. Out of sight, out of mind.

Is there really a whole lot between McCrorie, Jon McCracken and Laidlaw? I don’t think so.

Ross County striker Ronan Hale will be unable to play for Northern Ireland against Belarus and Bulgaria because international clearance for his switch from the Republic of Ireland, for whom he played at under-21 level, has not come through on time. (Scottish Sun), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

What would you like to ask Tom English about Ross County?

Our chief sportswriter is in the hotseat ready to answer your questions and offer his insight and opinion on your club.

Who has been the top performer so far? Is the manager living up to expectations?

Put your questions to Tom here, external.

Sportscene pundits Niall McGinn and Cammy Bell assess Ross County's penalty drama in their 2-1 defeat against Celtic.

(Available to UK users only)

Ross Morren
Fan writer

Ross County fans were hoping their side could capitalise on a potential European hangover from Celtic in Dingwall on Sunday.

The early signs were very promising. Celtic looked sluggish in possession and didn't offer a creative outlet in the final third against a County defence who were quick to limit space and were a match to any threats the away side had to offer.

At the other end, Don Cowie's side took a shock lead thanks to Ronan Hale's penalty. Hale showed real character to pick the same corner after his initial penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel, who was judged to have been off his line when Hale made contact with the ball, prompting a retake.

Celtic seemed to be running out of ideas and the County backline looked impenetrable. However, going into the final 15 minutes, a stroke of bad luck and then a moment of controversy cost County a historic result.

On another day, Callum McGregor's volley could have deflected off Alistair Johnston and gone high and wide. Unfortunately, it flew into the net to give Celtic a lifeline.

Everyone associated with the Staggies was then bemused with Kevin Clancy's decision to award a free-kick for challenge on Luke McCowan halfway inside the Celtic half. The frustration at the standard of officiating was growing as the match went on and stonewall fouls on County players were being waved away

That feeling then turned to anger as Celtic took the free-kick quickly and, two passes later, Nicolas Kuhn was played through on goal to score the winner on what was probably the only occasion Celtic carved open the resolute County defence.

County deserve a lot of credit for pushing Celtic right to the end. Connor Randall and Josh Nisbet were outstanding up against Reo Hatate and Arne Engels, who really struggled to have any influence, while Kacper Lopata had Adam Idah in his back pocket.

Cowie will take plenty of positives from this performance as well as the previous three matches and hope to continue County's recent momentum on the other side of the international break.

Ross Morren can be found at The County Corner, external

County fans, we asked for your thoughts after Sunday's narrow defeat to Celtic.

Here's what some of you had to say:

Graham: A really strong and positive performance. Well organised, good support play and a great team effort. Very happy with the players who Don Cowie is getting the best of.

Ron: An excellent team performance that illustrated to Brendan Rogers how to set up against a vastly superior side. The half-time stats were astonishing - County had only 20% possession but five shots on target compared to Celtic's one. A soft foul given in midfield followed by an uncharacteristic loss of shape undid us for the winner but no shame in the result.

Mike: I haven't seen a better performance from Ross County for a long time, the manager has had a huge influence on the squad when you play a team like Celtic. Sunday afternoon was a joy even though it was a defeat. I think we've got a squad that could surprise the league. Maybe top six or Europe next year, who knows? I can cross my fingers but every team beware!

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Tenacity personified, Connor Randall is the gritty heartbeat of this Ross County side.

He is always snapping away, making tackles, making blocks. It could well be another tough season for County but with a battler like Randall they have a chance.

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• Ross County have lost 7 points from winning positions in the Premiership this season, no team has lost more.

• Ross County have lost a home game after leading at half time in the Premiership for the first time since 17th December 2022 against St. Johnstone (10 games without defeat).

• Celtic have scored in their last 16 games in the Premiership, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of 27 games from 1st October 2022 to 7th May 2023.

• Celtic have won their last 13 games in the Premiership, their last longer winning streak was from 24th September 2016 to 1st March 2017, a run of 22 games.

Watch highlights of Celtic's Scottish Premiership win against Ross County.

Available to UK users only.

Ross County boss Don Cowie claims Celtic should never have been awarded a free-kick in the build-up to Nicolas Kuhn's late winner in Dingwall. (Football Scotland), external

Read the rest of Monday's Scottish gossip.

County tried with all their might, but Celtic eventually came up with the goods after a robust showing from Don Cowie's side.

Whether you were at the game or watching elsewhere, we want to hear from you.

Give us your thoughts on the game here., external

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Ross County manager Don Cowie tells BBC Scotland: "It's disappointing against anyone when you put that much effort in. I still see plenty of positives.

"We're playing against a massive team with a massive budget compared to what we have. How do we compete against that? It's about good organisation and working hard, and I saw that in abundance. I'm disappointed for the group but really proud of them."

"When you come away with nothing and you see no reward, it's sore. It's up to me to remind them of how good they were as a unit. It's something we've worked hard on, tightening up at the back and in the last few weeks I've seen an improvement."

Amy Canavan
BBC Sport Scotland

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It’s the old cliche, but County’s season won’t be defined by results against Celtic and Rangers. Instead, they must look at their own performance.

Don Cowie's side made it stuffy and uncomfortable for Celtic, who until they made changes, failed to carve them open or even remotely test goalkeeper Ross Laidlaw.

The County midfield didn't allow their visitors to find their usual rhythm and Connor Randall and Elijah Campbell impressed in cutting out any danger.

In second half, when you'd expect Celtic to throw all their might, muscle and money at it, Jordan White worked tirelessly to act as an out for the hard-working defence and midfield.

Which is why the winner will hurt County so dearly. Down at their corner flag, Celtic recovered possession and made their way up the park in an instant.

County have now lost seven points from winning positions this season, more than any other Premiership side. That is something they must address.

But it was an afternoon were Cowie's side made Dingwall almost as daunting as Dortmund for Celtic, and there's plenty to take from that.

Connor Randall was a colossus in front of the Ross County defence and blocked ball after ball and attack after attack.

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Ross County hope to have Josh Reid back in contention after the left-back missed the last three matches through injury.

Will Nightingale, an unused sub last weekend, drops out and joins fellow defenders George Harmon (ankle) and Ricki Lamie (Achilles) on the sidelines.

Celtic will be missing injured defenders Cameron Carter-Vickers (toe) and Greg Taylor (calf).