WELCOME OFFER FOR THE SCOTTISH PREMIERSHIP AVAILABLE HERE
Recent Form
Celtic appeared to have put talk of a crisis to bed with a commanding 2-0 win over Aberdeen last weekend, though with that a cup match, they’ve fallen further behind Rangers as they now trail their Glaswegian neighbours by nine points, albeit with a couple of games in hand.
With just the solitary point from their opening two Europa League group stage matches, they were under pressure midweek to follow up on last weekend’s result, especially as theoretically Sparta Prague are their weakest opponents in Group H.
Despite home advantage, the Hoops were already under the cosh when the depleted Czech side opened the scoring in the 4-1 rout. Although Leigh Griffiths reacted the quickest to pull one back, they were always second best and never really looked like getting a proper foothold in the contest.
Neil Lennon’s side now have just one win in six, though each of the teams they’ve faced over this spell are a step up on Motherwell.
It’s been quite some time since Celtic last tasted real success on the European stage, but they typically bounce back domestically from disappointments on the continent.
They’ve still won a very healthy 36 of 39 unbeaten matches when excluding European games or Old Firm derbies dating back over 12 months now, as they won 25 of these by at least two clear goals.
Celtic -1 Handicap
Motherwell shouldn’t be underestimated having won to nil in four of their last five league games, racking up 10 goals across those victories, though it’s worth noting that their other appearance saw them demolished 5-1 by Rangers.
Prior to that run they’d lost four of six winless matches this season, including a 3-0 defeat to Celtic themselves, while more recently they were also downed 3-0 by Israeli outfit Hapoel Be’er Sheva as they faltered in the Europa League qualifiers.
The head to heads have been pretty unforgiving for Motherwell in recent times. They’ve lost each of their past six meetings with Celtic as their smallest defeat came by a 2-0 scoreline, with the champions netting 21 times in total, so the handicap holds obvious appeal here.
In fact, up against either of the Old Firm duo, Motherwell have lost by a minimum two-goal margin in 10 of 13 matches since 2018/19, as well as by at least three clear goals in eight of the last 12.
Celtic will have to make do without the quartet of Kristoffer Ajer, Christopher Julien, James Forrest and Michael Johnston until after the international break, but Motherwell have their own concerns. Goalkeepers Scott Fox and Trevor Carson miss out, while defender Bevis Mugabi and midfielder Liam Donnelly are both doubts.
MOTHERWELL V CELTIC ODDS AVAILABLE HERE
18+BeGambleAware
ODDS ARE CORRECT AS OF 06/11/2020 HOWEVER ARE SUBJECT TO FLUCTUATIONS
