3 minute read
13/2/2022 | 08:35am
Celtic have been dealt a late injury blow ahead of their Scottish Cup fixture this afternoon.
What’s the latest?
In a recent post on The Athletic, Kieran Devlin revealed that Ange Postecoglou will not be able to call upon Josip Juranovic for the visit of Raith Rovers today, as the right-back has not recovered from an illness which saw him miss the 3-2 victory over Aberdeen on Wednesday.
In his post regarding the Scottish Cup clash, the journalist said: “Juranovic won’t make it”.
Do you think Juranovic will be fit for next Thursday?
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Fans want to be gutted
Juranovic’s absence as Celtic face a Raith team who currently occupy fourth place in thevChampionship should not cause Postecoglou’s side too much trouble. However, the continued absence of the defender will undoubtedly leave the Parkhead faithfully gutted, especially with Thursday’s Europa Conference League tie against Bodo/Glimt almost approaching.
Indeed, over his 20 Premiership appearances following his £2.5m move to Celtic last summer, the £3.6m-rated Croatia international has quickly established himself as a key player for the Hoops. He has already helped his side to keep eight clean sheets, scored two goals and created four big chances for his teammates, in addition to making 1.4 key passes, one interception, 1.6 tackles and 1.5 clearances and winning 3.1 duels per game.
Big Fat Celtic Quiz of 2021 – can you get 100%? Question 1. How many managers have Celtic had in 2021?
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These returns have seen the £16k-per-week defender average a remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.25. That not only ranks him as the Bhoys’ joint seventh-best performer in the league (of those who remain in Postecoglou’s first-team squad), but also as the joint 10th-best player in the entire Scottish top flight.
As such, the 26-year-old’s absence on Sunday should not be a disaster for the Hoops, but should Juranovic fail to overcome his illness prior to Bodo/Glimt’s visit to Celtic Park on Thursday, the potential consequences could be devastating for Postecoglou and his side.
In other news – Forget Bitton: Ange must finally unleash Celtic’s “brave” £4.95m-rated “threat” today
