Celtic had their nine-match undefeated streak come to an end in midweek and they will now be hoping to get back to winning ways on Sunday when they host Aberdeen.

The visitors have lost consecutive games heading into this match, which the squad will be hoping to set right as they now sit just five points above the relegation zone.

Match preview

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou reacts on October 19, 2021 © Reuters

Celtic were defeated in midweek when they faced Bayern Leverkusen, despite the fact they originally took a 2-1 lead, as they conceded twice in the final 10 minutes of the game to lose 3-2.

However, prior to that, the Hoops had built up an undefeated run of nine games in all competitions and that recent form had helped to push them back into the title race.

Ange Postecoglou has guided his team up to second in the league table with just four points separating them and league leaders Rangers at the moment.

Celtic were also able to reach the Scottish League Cup final recently, having defeated St Johnstone 1-0 via a James Forrest strike.

The Hoops were also able to pick up three points the last time they met the Dons, with an 84th-minute goal from Jota securing a 2-1 win for his team on the day.

Aberdeen's Joe Lewis pictured in November 2020 © Reuters

Aberdeen have struggled as of late in the league, having lost their previous two matches without scoring once, adding further concern to their recent performances.

The squad have managed just two victories in their previous six fixtures, but so far this month they have been unable to secure three points.

The Dons followed up a loss against Motherwell by being beaten by Dundee United in a match that also saw Funso Ojo receive a red card.

At the moment Aberdeen sit just five points above the relegation zone and considering all of the teams below them have a game in hand, that is a gap that could end up shrinking.

Only Ross County have actually lost more matches than Aberdeen this season and the form needs to be improved upon sooner than later.

Celtic Scottish Premiership form:

Celtic form (all competitions):

Aberdeen Scottish Premiership form:

Aberdeen form (all competitions):

Team News

Celtic coach Ange Postecoglou pictured on August 12, 2021 © Reuters

Celtic had to deal with a trio of injury problems in midweek with Tom Rogic and Carl Starfelt having missed out, despite some late hope that they would be fit enough.

Meanwhile Giorgos Giakoumakis has also had his own issues as well which kept the striker out of action and will stop him from being an option.

Aberdeen will be missing Ojo at the weekend due to his red card against Dundee United and that could open up the door for Matty Longstaff to start on Sunday.

The Dons will also be without Calvin Ramsay, Jack MacKenzie and Declan Gallagher who are all dealing with injuries that will keep them out for this match.

Celtic possible starting lineup:
Hart; Ralston, Carter-Vickers, Welsh, Juranovic; Bitton, Forrest, Turnbull, McGregor, Jota; Furuhashi

Aberdeen possible starting lineup:
Lewis; McCrorie, Brown, McKenzie; Campbell, Longstaff, McGeouch, Gurr, Hedges; Ramirez, Watkins

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We say: Celtic 3-1 Aberdeen

Celtic have been in strong form as of late and even though they lost their most recent outing, the squad will no doubt have the belief that they can get back to winning ways.

Their attacking qualities will likely prove to be too much for the visiting team, especially considering their poor form as of late.

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Celtic win with a probability of 78.21%. A draw had a probability of 14% and a win for Aberdeen had a probability of 7.82%.

The most likely scoreline for a Celtic win was 2-0 with a probability of 12.06%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 3-0 (10.62%) and 1-0 (9.13%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (6.6%), while for an Aberdeen win it was 0-1 (2.5%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with an 8.7% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Celtic would win this match.