Celtic are out for revenge against St Mirren this weekend after they were beaten by the Saints in the League Cup final under Wilfried Nancy in December.
The Hoops have lost their last two domestic cup finals, to Aberdeen and St Mirren, and they have a chance to make the final of the SFA Cup by beating St Mirren in the semi-finals on Sunday.
Nancy was in the dugout when these two teams met at Hampden Park in the first half of the season, and it was one of the six defeats that the Frenchman oversaw in his eight games in charge.
The Scottish giants have a different manager in charge now, in Martin O’Neill, and their current head coach oversaw a 1-0 win over St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership last weekend.
Despite beating them last time out in the league, Celtic will not see the Saints as pushovers because of what happened at Hampden Park in December.
What Celtic can learn from their League Cup final defeat to St Mirren
In that cup final defeat, St Mirren had far too much joy from crossing situations, scoring from an open play cross and a corner, and that is something that Celtic need to learn from.
Auston Trusty and Liam Scales started at centre-back in that match and will likely do so again on Sunday, so they need to be far more aware of their surroundings and who they should be marking when a ball comes into the box.
The Hoops also need to be far better on the ball to avoid losing possession too easily to aggressive pressing players like Alex Gogic, Killian Phillips, and Jacob Devaney.
Because of St Mirren’s aggressive style of play, O’Neill should drop Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, despite his goal last weekend, from the team to unleash a different midfielder in his place.
Celtic’s new O’Riley should replace Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
The former Premier League winner scored the winning goal against the Saints in the league, but he is still finding his way back to full fitness and has looked slightly off the pace at times in matches.
Oxlade-Chamberlain, therefore, may be more suited to coming off the bench in this match, which could go to extra-time and penalties, to allow Arne Engels to start in his place.
Celtic need quality on the ball to evade the St Mirren press and the Belgium international can certainly provide that, having emerged as Matt O’Riley 2.0 since his £11m move from Augsburg.
|
25/26 Premiership |
Engels |
Rank vs CMs |
|---|---|---|
|
xA |
3.74 |
Top 12% |
|
Big chances created |
5 |
Top 17% |
|
Key passes |
37 |
Top 11% |
|
Successful crosses |
26 |
Top 7% |
|
Assists |
2 |
Top 30% |
Engels has been one of the most creative central midfielders in the Premiership this season, despite only playing in 25 of the 33 league games due to injury, and has the quality to unlock the Saints defence.
Oxlade-Chamberlain, meanwhile, is yet to create a ‘big chance’ or register an assist in the league since his move to the club in February, which shows that he may not offer the same level of creative quality.
Engels has scored 15 goals and provided 20 assists in 91 appearances in all competitions for the Hoops since his move from Germany in the summer of 2024, offering quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals from midfield.
Celtic needed a player like that after they sold Matt O’Riley to Brighton & Hove Albion for a fee of £25m, as he scored 27 goals and assisted a further 35 in 124 matches for the club.
Celtic’s most expensive sales of all time
Celtic have let some of their finest talents move for big money in the past.
The Denmark international averaged a goal or an assist every two matches for Celtic throughout his career at Parkhead, whilst Engels is currently averaging one every 2.6 games.
Engels may not be quite as productive as O’Riley was for the Hoops, but the Belgian star has the ability to score and create goals with his technical quality, which is why he could be the match winner against St Mirren on Sunday.
Therefore, O’Neill should unleash the former Augsburg technician from the start in the SFA Cup semi-final, leaving Oxlade-Chamberlain to come off the bench as an impact substitute.
The right-footed star’s composure and quality on the ball, along with his engine and work rate out of possession, could make him the ideal pick to face St Mirren’s midfield in this setting, and he could play a key role in Celtic making the final.
Celtic must finally sell £1.4m star who’s becoming the new Edouard
Celtic have plenty of decisions to make this summer and should show the door to a midfield star who’s struggling under Martin O’Neill.
