Kris Commons ought to have Celtic ahead after found unmarked by a Stuart Armstrong ball into the penalty box. Goalkeeper Mark Ridgers does well to beat the ball away, but the midfielder ought to have found one of the corners from 14 yards out.

St Mirren are giving Kris Commons too much space, but they are fortunate that the midfielder batters his effort into the side-netting after advancing unchallenged into the penalty box.

At the moment, it is Celtic dominating possession, as you might expect, with Yoann Arquin looking an increasingly isolated figure up front for the home side.

Leigh Griffiths has lost his place in the Celtic forward line and the striker probably hasn't done his cause much good by being caught by the TV cameras tucking into a certain brand of Scottish teacake in the dugout.

G Maclaughlan: "Andrew Robertson was identified by Jackie and sold after one season for a good fee. Peter Houston left because he thought the future was bleak, Jackie brought on Ryan Gauld. For me, he deserves to be rewarded for adding value to team." Support there for Dundee United manager Jackie McNamara over those bonuses.

Celtic midfielder Kris Commons tries an audacious drive from an almost impossible angle after jinking to the by-line. Mark Ridgers is almost caught out by the attempt aimed at the gap left between his body and the near post, but the goalkeeper manages to beat the ball away for a corner.

Anthony Stokes is lucky to get away without a yellow card after hauling back St Mirren winger James Dayton.

Anthony Stokes is immediately into the action, finding himself in space as he gathers a long ball into the St Mirren penalty box, but the striker screws his low drive wide on the turn.

Richard Wilson
BBC Scotland at St Mirren Park

"A game of contrasts at St Mirren Park. Celtic, the league leaders, are playing with confidence and momentum, and can afford to put their in-form striker Leigh Griffiths on the bench and still start with a player of Anthony Stokes' calibre up front. They are chasing glory this season, whereas, for the home side, the only thought is of safety. They are four points adrift at the bottom and have struggled to score goals and stop conceding them all season. The expectation, certainly, is of a comfortable victory for Celtic, even though St Mirren are fighting for their lives."

Celtic's players in all dark green emerge from their traditional huddle as St Mirren in their traditional black and white stripes kick off in Paisley.

The bugle calls as the gladiators, sorry, the players enter the St Mirren Park pitch.

Alan St Mirren fan: "Looks like the manager listens to the fans - no Thompson and Sandler playing."

"Celtic have hit form at the right time and Ronny Deila has got his formation right. They have been steamrolling everybody and I don't expect anything else tonight."

"It was tough to pick a team today, but we think we have the right one.

"Anthony Stokes has been very good in training and we want to give him a chance up front.

"Adam Matthews is a very good full-back and an important player for us.

"It is going to be a tough game, but I am looking for a performance and if we win with a bad performance, I will be angry."

"I think this is a huge game for St Mirren. We don't expect them to win the game, but they need to put in a performance. If they get turned over tonight, the confidence will be really down."

If you want to read more about that Dundee United statement clarifying manager's Jackie McNamara's bonuses, you can read it here.

Stuart Nicoll: "Ha ha, what's today's date - the 1st April?"

Buffalo Celtic: "Absolutely deluded."

We are assuming that these tweets are in response to Rangers manager Stuart McCall's suggestion that his side could challenge for European qualification next season rather than the Virgil van Dijk's claim that he is not looking for a move away from Celtic!

Celtic manager Ronny Deila has also made several changes - four in fact. Nir Bitton had been an injury doubt before playing for Israel in midweek and drops out of midfielder along with Gary Mackay-Steven, while Efe Ambrose and John Guidetti also miss out. Adam Matthews replaces Ambrose at right-back after his recovery from injury, Anthony Stokes is given Guidetti's role up front after returning from suspension, while James Forrest and Kris Commons will add to the creativity in midfield.

The surprising news from St Mirren is that veteran striker Steven Thompson has been left out the starting line-up, with defender Sean Kelly and forward Alan Gow also dropping out. Yoann Arquin is on his own up front, with Kieran Sadlier coming into midfield and Marc McAusland in defence after recovering from injury. Manager Gary Teale said of Thompson: "I just felt I wanted to freshen things up. It's great we've got competition in the squad now."