Celtic defender Cameron Carter-Vickers will miss Saturday’s derby against Rangers but Liel Abada and Reo Hatate are likely to be on the bench following lengthy periods out.
Carter-Vickers went off during the Boxing Day win over Dundee with a tight hamstring and manager Brendan Rodgers confirmed the centre-back would not be available for the next two games.
Rodgers said: “It’s not longer term but you probably won’t see him until after the winter break.
“It is (a blow) of course but I always think it’s an opportunity for someone else. We had it in the last game (against Rangers) when Gustaf (Lagerbielke) and Liam Scales came into the team and for Liam it was the making of him.
“It’s always a sadness when you lose a top player but he will be back after this break and can hopefully stay clear of injury for the second half of the season.”
Rodgers has backed Stephen Welsh to fill the void after making a positive contribution in recent weeks following a lengthy spell out with an ankle injury.
“Stephen played against Feyenoord and played very, very well,” Rodgers said. “I really liked seeing him.
“I brought him with me as a young player when I was here first time round. He was only a kid then and he has really matured. He maybe hasn’t played as much as he would have liked but only because of the form of Cam and Carl Starfelt when he was here.
“That was the challenge for him but he has always been there as a loyal support to play and I know that I can trust him when I put him in.
“So if he is the guy that gets the chance to play then I have every faith that he can perform.”
Abada last featured in Celtic’s 1-0 Ibrox win on September 3 before suffering a thigh injury while training with Israel, and Hatate has been out for two months with a hamstring problem.
Rodgers said: “They have trained, Liel a little bit longer. We don’t want to rush them but if they come through then they will be involved in the squad.
“They are excited to be back. I am just mindful of the stage they are at but they have shown up well in training, they want to be involved, and hopefully they have come through with no ill-effects.
“They are both very good performers. Liel is a goalscorer who plays wide. His record goals to games is very good. He just wants to get back on the field again, it’s been a challenging few months for him with injury and everything else. But he looks really good in training and if I need him then I will be happy to do that. And Reo is a big talent so it will be great to have him back.”
There will be no visiting fans at Celtic Park but Rodgers is excited about the atmosphere ahead of his first home derby against Rangers since September 2018, when Olivier Ntcham got the only goal for the hosts.
“These are amazing games, it’s such an iconic game to be involved in,” he said. “We got a great result at Ibrox and now we are in front of our own supporters so we are really excited by it.
“It’s a fantastic game to be involved in, the atmosphere will be electric and that’s what I really can’t wait for. But it’s up to us to provide the intensity and urgency.
“There’s a real pressure about the game but I have always enjoyed seeing the team perform in that pressure.”
Rangers are unbeaten in 16 games under Philippe Clement and are five points behind the cinch Premiership leaders with two games in hand.
“Philippe has done very well since coming in,” Rodgers said. “He has come in with experience and common sense in terms of setting up the team. All the players together know their job and you can see they have benefited from that. They have good players.
“I am looking forward to the game because it should be a football game. The last few weeks we have played against back fives and teams sitting low in the field. This should hopefully be a really good football game.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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