da winzada777： With football fans across the land delighted that international football is again behind us, for a short while at least, we can get back to the real action this weekend.
da realbet： For Celtic, that means a trip to face Hamilton in the Scottish Premiership, a match that the Hoops will see as a must win after dropping points last time out against St Johnstone. The action comes thick and fast for the Scottish champions over the next few weeks with European and domestic matches every weekend and mid-week in September.
The Hoops have a massive encounter at home to Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday and while focus will most certainly be on securing three points at Hamilton, it’s only natural for both Brendan Rodgers and his side to have one eye on that fixture.
Will that PSG game dictate team selection on Friday night? Will players be rested and youngsters come into the starting XI?
These are the three selection headaches Rodgers must solve before Friday’s trip…
Rotation in defence
With Dedryck Boyata still returning to full fitness and Erik Sviatchenko still ruled out, Brendan Rodgers will most likely have something of a makeshift defence to call upon against Hamilton. The situation is not helped with the fact Hamilton play on an artificial surface, something which has ruled centre-back Jozo Simunovic out of previous matches due to the impact it can have with regards to muscle injuries.
That means we could see a centre-back pairing like Mikael Lustig and Kristoffer Ajer, or even Kieran Tierney moving into the middle as he as done a few times this season. It could also be a chance for Anthony Ralston or Calvin Miller to continue their development in the first team.
For our money, a back four of Ralston, Lustig, Ajer and Tierney seems like the perfect blend of potential and experience for what will likely be a high tempo, hard fought Friday night match under the lights and on television.
Keep Scott Brown for Tuesday?
It wasn’t so long ago that Scott Brown retired from international football with the express purpose of maximising the time left in his club career. Making his return to Gordon Strachan’s Scotland side, Brown has featured heavily for the Tartan army since and started both of their matches last Friday and Monday past against Lithuania and Malta.
With Paris Saint-Germain on the horizon, should Brendan Rodgers leave his captain out of what should be a routine win at New Douglas Park? It’s not like the Hoops don’t have depth in the position with the likes of Callum McGregor, Stuart Armstrong or even Liam Henderson to play alongside Olivier Ntcham.
Celtic will need a full blood, guts and thunder performance from Brown on Tuesday night and keeping him fresh would be a smart ploy in our books. Brown has already played 12 matches in a short space of time this summer for club and country and adding another one to the books on Friday could take something out of his legs before the UEFA Champions League begins.
International impact
Having played on the other side of the world just two days ago, another man who may have to sit out of Friday night’s match is Australian international Tom Rogic. Friday night has come just too soon for the midfield maestro and again, with Paris Saint-Germain ahead next week, the Hoops will want Rogic to be as fit as possible for that one.
Options to replace him behind the striker include Callum McGregor, Stuart Armstrong or, if they’re needed further back, even the likes of Patrick Roberts and Kundai Benyu.
Known primarily as a winger, having Roberts play through the middle could be the option to go for on Friday, with James Forrest in decent form and more than capable of impacting the game from the right flank.
Getting this selection right will be key, especially as Leigh Griffiths is set to miss out and the Hoops may have to turn to the inexperienced Odsonne Edouard to lead the line.