Celtic and Motherwell will clash at Celtic Park on Sunday, with both sides hoping to maintain their undefeated starts to their Scottish Premiership campaigns.
The hosts are surprisingly second in the table with 14 points from their first six league fixtures, whereas Motherwell head to the home of the champions in fourth place with eight points, with the club beating Aberdeen 2-0 on September 27.
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Celtic vs Motherwell prediction: Unusually poor attacking displays from the hosts
Key stats
- Celtic have scored one or fewer goals in six of their last nine games, failing to find the back of the net on five occasions.
- Motherwell have kept six clean sheets in their 10 most recent competitive outings, but they scored one or fewer goals in six of those 10 matches.
- The hosts have generated 23 big chances in the league but have missed 17 of them, while the visitors have created 13 big chances but missed 10.
Correct score prediction: Celtic 2-1 Motherwell
Celtic have still managed to create a large volume of chances despite their inconsistencies in the final third, so perhaps they will emerge as winners if they are somewhat more ruthless on the weekend.
Pre-game odds and win probability: Celtic predicted to win by the bookmakers
- HOME: 1/15 (1.07) – 93.8%%
- DRAW: 13/2 (7.5) – 12.3%
- AWAY: 10/1 (11) – 9.1%
*odds from Ladbrokes, subject to change
Celtic are the expected winner of this clash, with a probability of 93.8%, and the bookmakers would be incredibly surprised if Motherwell managed to take a single point, yet alone three.
You can find all our predictions for today's games on our football betting tips page.
Most recent H2Hs: Celtic continue to dominate
A victory for Motherwell on Sunday would be their first in any competitive meeting with their hosts since 2015, with Celtic winning 29 times since their last defeat, drawing on five occasions.
The Bhoys have triumphed in each of their last four encounters with the visitors, netting at least three goals in those games.
Scotland Premiership 02/02/25
Motherwell
Celtic
Scotland Premiership 26/12/24
Celtic
Motherwell
Scotland Premiership 27/10/24
Motherwell
Celtic
Scotland Premiership 25/02/24
Motherwell
Celtic
Scotland Premiership 25/11/23
Celtic
Motherwell
Celtic preview: Poor start to the season
The hosts will be looking to respond to their controversial 2-0 defeat against Braga in the Europa League on Thursday, a match in which they were denied an equaliser shortly after half time for an apparent handball offence.
Brendan Rodgers has faced stern criticism from fans, but he will hope that striker Kelechi Iheanacho does not have a goal ruled out at Celtic Park on Sunday.
Predicted lineup: Schmeichel (GK), Ralston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Saracchi, Nygren, McGregor, Hatate, Maeda, Iheanacho & Tounekti
Last five results:
- Celtic 0-2 Braga
- Celtic 0-0 Hibernian
- Red Star Belgrade 1-1 Celtic
- Partick Thistle 0-4 Celtic
- Kilmarnock 1-2 Celtic
Motherwell preview: Draws galore
Motherwell head to Celtic Park looking for a third consecutive win, but they were held to stalemates in five of their prior six fixtures in all competitions.
Having scored and provided an assist last time out against Aberdeen, striker Apostolos Stamatelopoulos can be expected to continue up front.
Predicted lineup: Ward (GK), O'Donnell, Gordon, Welsh, Longelo, Fadinger, Watt, Maswanhise, Said, Osong & Stamatelopoulos
Last five results:
- Motherwell 2-0 Aberdeen
- Aberdeen 1-0 Motherwell
- Dundee FC 1-1 Motherwell
- Motherwell 2-2 Kilmarnock
- Hearts 3-3 Motherwell
Player to watch: Kelechi Iheanacho
Kelechi Iheanacho was harshly penalised for a supposed handball offence in the buildup to his disallowed goal against Braga, and the Celtic man was denied his third goal for the club.
The striker was signed in the summer, reuniting with former boss Rodgers having worked under him at Leicester City, and he will hope the head coach can help him rediscover form.