St Johnstone duo James Brown and Cammy MacPherson have chance of Celtic return
Steven MacLean’s injury list is gradually coming down.
St Johnstone manager Steven MacLean could have James Brown back in his squad for the trip to face Celtic on Saturday.
And Cammy MacPherson also has an outside chance of featuring.
It will be a welcome change for MacLean to have players returning after 10 senior pros were sidelined for Saints’ last Premiership fixture against Ross County.
“Cammy did well last week and hopefully he’ll get another full week under his belt,” the Perth boss reported.
“If James keeps training he should be available for selection.
“Kano did some work on the grass last week and will be back on it today.
“Nicky Clark is making progress, Tony Gallacher still hasn’t trained, Drey’s a bit away and Ali Crawford and Callum Booth are still injured as well.
“We got a lot of work into the players who needed it last week and we’ll keep topping that up.”
Ferguson loan
Meanwhile, Alex Ferguson has got a chance to take the next step in his career by impressing in League One with Queen of the South.
“Alex has gone out on loan because we are strengthening in the middle of the park so his game time will be limited,” said MacLean.
“Going to Queen of the South is a good opportunity for him to play and make progress.
It’s a good move for him.”
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Celtic first-team injury situation gets even more concerning; full picture
Celtic find themselves in the midst of a bit of an injury crisis at present.
The Hoops are in a pretty unfortunate place after a number of injuries were picked up in matches and training in recent weeks.
With huge domestic and continental challenges on the horizon, and the team reeling from a dire cup defeat to Kilmarnock on Sunday, it’s a tough place we find ourselves in right now.
Even more unfortunately, the vast majority of our current fitness issues concern central-defenders. Cameron Carter-Vickers, Maik Nawrocki, Stephen Welsh and Yuki Kobayashi are all currently out with medium term injuries.
With Carl Starfelt departing the club for Celta Vigo a fortnight ago, the situation is pretty precarious.
The Scottish Sun reported last night that Nawrocki picked up a hamstring injury in the closing stages of the Killie loss. The Pole isn’t expected to be back for our fixture at Ibrox in less than a fortnight.
The same outlet also say that Carter-Vickers is set to miss the derby with his hamstring issue.
Welsh is due to miss the next three to four months after damaging ligaments in his ankle while Kobayashi hasn’t featured since our tour of Japan.
It means that a central defensive partnership of Liam Scales and Gustaf Lagerbielke looks likely for the coming weeks.
Right-back Alistair Johnston has returned to training and is expected back imminently.
In a more attacking sense, Reo Hatate, Marco Tilio, Mikey Johnston and Hyeongyu Oh are all out with similarly medium term injuries.
Johnston’s back injury was said to keep him out for about three months, so we can maybe expect to see him back in the reckoning in about six weeks.
Oh was expected to be out for about six weeks with a calf problem, but may already have endured about a third of that lay-off.
Less is known about Hatate although he looks to be in a race against time to be fit for Ibrox. Tilio won’t feature in that match either with Rodgers recently suggesting he could be back for the middle of September.
So with at least nine players currently out, and almost all of them not insignificant injuries, we find ourselves in a tough place.
It’s time to see the character of the team in the coming weeks.
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6 James McCarthy transfer destinations as midfielder nears Celtic exit
The midfielder and his agent are on the search for a new club
James McCarthy finally appears to be moving on from Celtic after being out of the picture for basically his entire time there.
The 32-year-old has managed just 27 appearances over his two-and-a-bit years in the east end of Glasgow as he struggled to fit into Ange Postecoglou’s style and was also hampered by niggling injuries. Ever since struggling to break into the side during his first season, the former Republic of Ireland international has been linked with moves away.
Brendan Rodgers has now revealed an exit is on the cards for the former Hamilton Accies, Wigan, Everton and Crystal Palace man. The Celts boss said the player and his agent have been assessing their options with the midfielder looking to move on in search of first time football.
Stoke City
A reunion with Alex Neil may appeal. The pair played together at Hamilton when McCarthy was an up-and-coming youngster and Neil was at the other end of his career. Neil is tasked with leading Stoke to the Premier League and the midfielder has vast experience at that level. Neil was understood to be keen on his former teammate when at Sunderland so could reignite that.
Sunderland
With that last point in mind, people at Sunderland will still be aware of the player if they were indeed looking at him when Neil was in charge. A move to such a massive club in the English second tier would be tough for him to turn down
Wigan
One of McCarthy’s former clubs and where he first made his name for himself down south after signing from Hamilton Accies. They had their transfer embargo lifted and are managed by Shaun Maloney who will know all about McCarthy’s talents. A loan would be the most likely should this be his destination.
hould McCarthy stay in the Premiership, there wouldn’t be too many realistic options but Hibs could cover more of his wages than most others in a loan swoop. The Easter Road side could do with a defensive midfielder who can play a bit and so this would suit in that respect.
Cardiff City
Recently priced out of a move for another former Everton midfielder Tom Davies, the Championship side may still be in the market. A poor start to their season means reinforcements are likely needed to try and drag them away from the relegation zone.
Fleetwood Town
Scott Brown hasn’t been shy in signing from his former club or from Scotland in general. McCarthy’s quality and experience could be vital in League One after Broony’s side got off to a slow start. Might not be the most appealing but options may be limited given the 32-year-old’s lack of football over the last couple of years.
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