Motherwell Preview

By: Matt | April 4th, 2008

doumbe Saturday is the start of another busy period for the Bhoys, with two of the next three games facing Motherwell, with the third of course being again against Rangers. After these three games, the likelihood of Celtic being able to contend for the league will be a lot clearer. Surely all three games are MUST WIN GAMES. Obviously Celtic will need to win as often as possible, but even if that happens they must rely on Rangers to drop points. However there is a chance of that occurring this weekend with Rangers facing a tough Dundee United team looking to hold onto third place. Of course, Motherwell will be a tough test for the Bhoys as well. This is the first time the Bhoys have faced Motherwell since October. A combination of the tragic passing of Phil O’Donnell and a pitch being torn to shit by both Motherwell and Gretna.

Of course, there are plenty of issues coming into the match to address. Unsurprisingly, UEFA has dropped any charges against Celtic fans of “Sectarian chanting”. Funny, when the host city raves about your visit, but a Scottish “freelance” journalist searches youtube to find any possible thing to stick it to “Timmy”, UEFA is on the scene. Either way, UEFA got it right and Celtic fans are in the clear. We got away with it again, Bhoys! (saracasm).

Coming into Saturday’s game, if there is a team that has had a worse March than us, it is probably Motherwell. Over March, we Won 2, Drew 1, and Lost 1. Motherwell spent the rainy March winning 1 Drawing 1 and losing 2, however their one win came against a Hibernian team who’s only losses were to Celtic and Rangers, so it is really like a mixed bag with the ‘well. Neither sides supporters know which team they will be getting on Saturday, but hopefully the Celtic supporters will see a side that has the urgency of a team that knows that if they lose, they should start scheduling the golf tee times and not worry about bothersome tasks like victory parades and celebrations. If you believe the news clips on the Celtic website, then the team has certainly not lost faith. Naka seems to see the urgency of the situation, calling every game from now on a “cup final” for the league. Aiden McGeady certainly feels that the Hoops can achieve anything with the type of backing they received in Ibrox last Saturday (which I thought had one of the worst atmospheres from the Celtic supporters in any of the “Auld Firms” I’ve viewed). And the Greek goalscorer, Georgios Samaras believes that if Celtic can take 24 points from the remaining games, they will have the league. It is good to see that players are stepping up and saying publicly that we are not dead and can win this thing, but I would like to see actions on the field say this as well.

In more positive news, Joe Doumbe is back on the pitch, playing in the first half for the reserves over Gretna. Doumbe of course netted home the winner last year in the Scottish Cup Final and has been out of action since the Champions League home tie against AC Milan. I have always rated Doumbe high. While a right back by trade, Doumbe has shown that he can play on the left as well and I think could be a good partner with Andres Hinkel. Hopefully Doumbe will be back in first team action soon, as I think it will sure up the often discussed shaky back line.