Celtic managed to see of St Johnstone yesterday with minimal complications to reclaim their place at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.
Psychologically, the fact the Bhoys go into the international break at the summit can only have a positive impact on Brendan Rodgers’ side, who gave an excellent account of themselves at Parkhead.
Kyogo Furuhashi’s dizzying movement couldn’t be contained by the Saints’ backline, with the 29-year-old scoring from a Nicolas Kuhn centre before returning the favour early in the second half, enabling the latter to net his second goal for the club.
James Forrest came off the bench to add a third goal, pouncing on an inch-perfect ball from Matt O’Riley to flash home a powerful left-footed strike.
Connor Smith pulled one back for the visitors; however, there was little to be dreary about on a day where the Hoops kicked off this weekend’s St Patrick’s Day festivities in style.
Now, we will need to go a couple of weeks without our (senior Men’s) Celtic fix due to the international break; however, Rodgers has revealed there are plans scheduled to keep his squad ticking over at Lennoxtown.
He stated: “There will be a little bit of rest, but there’s still work to be done; we’ll have a game behind closed doors to get one or two of our players up to speed.”
Once Scottish Premiership football resumes, Livingston lay in wait at the Tony Macaroni Arena on Sunday 31st March.
Brendan Rodgers update on Celtic’s Cameron Carter-Vickers
Cameron Carter-Vickers recovered from a hamstring problem that required a scan to feature for the Bhoys yesterday before being taken off on 75 minutes and replaced by Odin Thiago Holm.
The United States international came through unscathed, putting in a solid defensive display that earned him a Sofascore match rating of 7.8/10.
Nevertheless, Rodgers has revealed he is taking no chances with his fitness during the run-in. After discussions with Carter-Vickers’ national boss, Gregg Berhalter, it has been agreed that he will continue his fitness work at Lennoxtown rather than heading Stateside.
Rodgers stated [Clyde 1 Superscoreboard]: “I spoke to Gregg (Berhalter) from America, from the US team, we had a good chat and obviously the case for Cam, who has been out for a bit.
“I just worried that he would then go away and be involved in a couple of games when they are big games and maybe more so in June. We had a good chat and it was decided that he stays behind and does his work with us and tries to then remain fit for the rest of the season.”
Undoubtedly, Carter-Vickers is going to be majorly relied upon during the title race, and it makes sense to ensure we minimise the risk of any further damage to his hamstring amid a frustrating campaign for the ex-Tottenham Hotspur man.
Keeping him behind is the best option to guarantee his fitness for the rest of this term, and the break will allow us to grant him some much-needed time to recuperate properly.