After a solid win again at the weekend, the Light Blues have the chance to extend their lead at the top of the SPL with a trip to Ayrshire on Tuesday night. This re-arranged game against Killie (brought forward due to our involvement in the CIS Cup Final later this month) will be a good opportunity to keep Celtic under pressure in the league. The two Jimmy's now being in charge at Rugby Park can give our chums from the other side of the Clyde another conspiracy theory to chew on should, unlike they did last month, we manage to secure a win.
Once again, attempting to predict our team is not an easy task. For the first time in a long time, we'll have pretty much an entire squad to pick from with only Madjid Bougherra suffering from a slight knock. This means, Danny Wilson may retain his place in defence if the big Algerian can't prove his fitness. Other than that we should remain unchanged in defence with McGregor, Whittaker, Weir and Papac all still difficult to score goals against. It isn't beyond the realms of possibility that the manager may choose to rest one of them - probably to give Kirk Broadfoot some game time - but it is unlikely.
Into midfield and, as usual, this is the most difficult unit to guess ahead of most matches. Player of the Year contenders Steven Davis and Lee McCulloch are arguably certainties to start with Kevin Thomson beside 'Jig' in the centre. The recent return to his best form from Thomson has been one of the most positive issues recently for many bears. Unfortunately he seemed to be struggling with a slight back problem on Saturday so Smith may take to the opportunity to call on Mo Edu who has proven to be useful back-up of late. The final remaining position - wide on the left of midfield - is always a problem for the manager but with Beasley, Novo, Naismith, Fleck and Lafferty all fit and available; it will be fascinating to see who gets the nod.
Up front, most bears would be surprised to see anything other than the Miller/Boyd partnership which has been so fruitful this season. Unfortunately, neither player has been in the brightest of form since they returned from their respective injuries early in the New Year so both will be eager to contribute more during this vital part of the season. Again, with a fully fit squad they won't have the luxury of half-hearted contributions so we can only hope their deputies are putting them under pressure in training.
Certainly with Kilmarnock doing reasonably well under their new management team, anything less than our full attention could result in disappointment. As such, whoever is picked needs to play at their best for 90mins to bring back the spoils ahead of our enforced two week sabbatical from league duties with tough cup matches at Ibrox and Hampden against Dundee Utd and St Mirren respectively.
Possible team (4-4-2):
Into midfield and, as usual, this is the most difficult unit to guess ahead of most matches. Player of the Year contenders Steven Davis and Lee McCulloch are arguably certainties to start with Kevin Thomson beside 'Jig' in the centre. The recent return to his best form from Thomson has been one of the most positive issues recently for many bears. Unfortunately he seemed to be struggling with a slight back problem on Saturday so Smith may take to the opportunity to call on Mo Edu who has proven to be useful back-up of late. The final remaining position - wide on the left of midfield - is always a problem for the manager but with Beasley, Novo, Naismith, Fleck and Lafferty all fit and available; it will be fascinating to see who gets the nod.
Up front, most bears would be surprised to see anything other than the Miller/Boyd partnership which has been so fruitful this season. Unfortunately, neither player has been in the brightest of form since they returned from their respective injuries early in the New Year so both will be eager to contribute more during this vital part of the season. Again, with a fully fit squad they won't have the luxury of half-hearted contributions so we can only hope their deputies are putting them under pressure in training.
Certainly with Kilmarnock doing reasonably well under their new management team, anything less than our full attention could result in disappointment. As such, whoever is picked needs to play at their best for 90mins to bring back the spoils ahead of our enforced two week sabbatical from league duties with tough cup matches at Ibrox and Hampden against Dundee Utd and St Mirren respectively.
Possible team (4-4-2):
