Greenhill Road has not exactly been the happiest of hunting grounds for Celtic since we moved there in 2009. Yes, they won there later that year and they nicked a last minute win in Paisley last season - but they've lost on their other two visits in rather amusing circumstances. One of those was just a week after they'd thumped us 7-0 at Parkhead as we dumped them out of the Scottish Cup, while the other was a year later as we romped to a famous 4-0 victory a few days after our League Cup final disaster. It's not a record to be proud of. By comparison, Rangers have won all four of their league visits here and drew in the Scottish Cup in 2010.
So, Greenhill Road is as close as Celtic will have to a bogey ground at the moment, but that means absolutely nothing tomorrow. They will obviously be clear favourites for this game and they had been going well in the league until last weekend's shocker against St Johnstone. They'll be looking to bounce back from that and they could well be looking to take Thursday's European exit out on someone. On paper, we should have absolutely no chance of doing anything tomorrow.
However, on paper we shouldn't have had a hope of beating them 4-0 last year or in the Scottish Cup - yet we did. We must take the same approach tomorrow. Every player must give their all for the shirt and put in 100 per cent. Fight for the team, for every loose ball. Get in their faces earlier doors and keep on at them until the final whistle. Don't concede an early goal or concede late, don't make any stupid fouls or give the referee the sniff of a reason to give them a penalty. It's the old saying about hard work beating talent when talent doesn't work hard.
It would be fantastic if we had Nigel Hasselbaink's pace available to us for this one. We're probably going to have to rely on hitting Celtic on the break for much of the game, so a lightning quick player like him would be a real boost. However, he had to be subbed in Tuesday night's win over Morton and may miss out. If so, it would be nice to see Jon McShane handed his first start alongside Steven Thompson as he's more than earned it with his performances of late.
For once, we have a few players that can take advantage of the unwritten rule that says former players will haunt their old clubs. Step forward Paul McGowan and Graham Carey. McGowan has been in superb form since he moved to Saints permanently in the summer, although Carey has hardly had a look in due to a few fitness issues. If Hasselbaink is missing, Carey could take his place - although Gary Teale showed during the week we don't need to rely on Carey for free-kicks!
We also have a new player to think about for this one after youngster Joe McKee signed on loan from Burnley earlier this week. However, it is extremely unlikely he'll go straight into the side and he'll probably have to settle for a place on the bench. Still, he's another option - and apparently a pacey one at that. If Hasselbaink is out, he can join Hugh Murray, Aaron Mooy, Darren mcGregor and maybe Paul McQuade in the stand.
There's always been a running joke that Celtic fans are paranoid, but last year took that to new levels - and Neil Lennon didn't help things. Don't get me wrong, what he had to put up with off the pitch was disgraceful, but his constant blaming of referees was pathetic. I've nothing against building a siege mentality, just not a "Everyone's out to get us" mentality. Hopefully he's learned a few things from that and tones it down this year as he bids to end Rangers' run of three SPL titles on the spin - although an early European exit for the second year running doesn't bode well.
The Celtic goal threat tomorrow will come in the form of strikers Anthony Stokes and Gary Hooper - although the latter has been struggling with injury of late. The pair were phenomenal last season, scoring more than 40 between them, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see them reach a similar tally this year. Their finishing is clinical and their movement can cause great problems for just about any defence. If Hooper fails to make it, Georgios Samaras will probably step in. Normally he is good for a laugh, but tomorrow will probably be the one day he turns it on and produces a bit of skill.
While Hooper and Stokes will be the most likely scorers, that's not to say the rest of the Celtic team can't weigh in with goals. Kris Commons proved to be an inspired signing when he arrived in January, scoring for fun from midfield, while Paddy McCourt is capable of scoring wonder goals when he gets a game - as he did at Greenhill Road a few years back. Shaun Maloney can also chip in with a few when he isn't creating them, with Sung-Young Ki and Joe Ledley also more than capable of finding the net from the middle of the park. Then there's Scott Brown, although he's usually kicking folk than the ball - the sort of talent every team needs.
It's fair to say that Celtic were a bit of a shambles when we humped them last year and hastened the exit of manager Tony Mowbray. Hardly any of his signings are still at the club, with Lennon pretty much ripping up the defence over the last 12 months or so. Daniel Majstorovic is an imposing figure rather reminiscent of Boba Balde, while Kelvin Wilson has been brought in alongside him this season. Mark Wilson proved to be a bit of a goal machine last year from right back with Cha Du-Ri slotting in well. On the other side Charlie Mulgrew played on occasion but bizarrely seemed to excel in the middle, but the star was Emilio Izaguirre. He put in a number of sensational performances, but unfortunately for Celtic (and fortunately for us) he's currently out injured.
I'm not expecting anything from us tomorrow, but if we dig in and produce the sort of football we've been playing then we might just be able to sneak a point from this one.
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