Celtic Captain McGregor to miss Europa Real Betis clash

 

Celtic will be without both skipper Callum McGregor and Liel Abada for their Europa League opener against Real Betis Thursday.

It’s a huge blow to Celtic’s hopes of getting their European campaign off to a flying start with McGregor’s injury meaning he will play no part in the game.

There was better news at full-back with Anthony Ralston set to return in defence after he missed the win over Ross County at the weekend.

Manager Ange Postecoglou said: “Cal’s got a bit of a knock so he’ll miss out. It’s not great for us because he’s obviously a very influential player for us.

“Anthony Ralston is back so we’ll get him back involved. Liel Abada will miss out because of Yom Kippur, which is obviously a significant religious day for him.

“We’ve been going through a period like that at the moment, where we are getting some big outs but again it’s kind of the state of play since I’ve got here.

“We’ve sort of been in a constant state of flux, not being able to settle. Again you see that as an opportunity for us to just build resilience through this period and just keep going and play our football.

“If we can get through this period without shifting from the kind of team we want to be then its going to make us stronger once we get everyone back.”

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Celtic fans will not be allowed to attend the match at the 60,000 capacity Estadio Benito Villamarin due to a decision made by the local Andalusian authorities as Spain responds to the coronavirus pandemic.

Celtic will hope to have their captain back for the trip to Livingston on Sunday.