Brendan Rodgers’ side are sixth in the Scottish Premiership and under a great deal of pressure ahead of a home match against the Dons

Celtic are flirting with crisis ahead of a tricky home encounter against Aberdeen on Saturday.

Although they moved through to the League Cup semi-finals by beating St Johnstone in midweek, they are in the unfamiliar position of sixth in the Scottish Premiership standings, six points off the pace of leaders Hearts.

While they remain favourites to win the title, they have given themselves a great deal of work to do and failure to beat the Dons would only increase the pressure on Brendan Rodgers and his Bhoys.

In the United States (US) the game will not be available to watch live on television; however, it will be available to stream to subscribers of Celtic TV.

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In the United Kingdom (UK), the will not be available to watch on television or live streamed.

Nir Bitton and Jozo Simunovic are both missing for Celtic, while Kristoffer Ajer’s absence, expected to be between four and six weeks, increases the headaches for Rodgers in the heart of the defence. Filip Benkovic is also doubtful.

Leigh Griffiths should lead the line.

Possible Celtic XI: Gordon; Lustig, Boyata, Hendry, Tierney; Brown, Ntcham; Forrest, Rogic, Edouard; Griffiths

Aberdeen have a number of selection problems, too. Mark Reynolds and Tommie Hoban are both missing in the defence, while the midfield will be bereft of Greg Tansey and Scott Wright. Promising youngster Lewis Ferguson is a further worry.

On-loan Manchester United forward James Wilson should feature.

Possible Aberdeen XI: Lewis; Logan, Devlin, McKenna, Considine; Mackay-Steven, Forrester, Shinnie, McGinn; May, Wilson

Despite their indifferent form, Celtic are 2/5 favourites at bet 365. Aberdeen can be backed at 7/1, while the draw is 7/2.

Click here to see all of bet 365’s offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.

To say it has been an indifferent start to the season for Celtic would be a huge understatement. Brendan Rodgers’ side started the season as red-hot favourites to win another title but are instead mired in the middle of the table after six games, with newly promoted Livingston among the teams ahead of them.

Last weekend, they suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Kilmarnock, conceding a goal in the final minute having previously led the encounter at half-time

While they made partial amends in midweek by progressing to the League Cup semi-final, their 1-0 victory over St Johnstone was hardly the type of performance to get pulses racing. 

Their immediate target, though, has to be stabilising their position in the league. 

Aberdeen are another side who have failed to live up to expectations this season, with Derek McInnes’ side actually one place below the Parkhead side ahead of the weekend. Their lack of goals has been their biggest issue, with only five scored. 

Nevertheless, they can travel to Glasgow’s east end with more expectation than usual as they aim to replicate the 1-0 victory they enjoyed at Celtic Park in May, when Andrew Considine’s goal gave them the victory.

As the Portuguese continues to face questions regarding his future, a former Red Devils defender has questioned whether he should have been appointed

Jose Mourinho was “never right for Manchester United”, says Paul Parker, with the under-fire manager accused of having “not done his job properly”.

The Red Devils knew what they were getting when turning to the Portuguese tactician in the summer of 2016.

Having decided to part with Louis van Gaal, United handed the reins to a man with a reputation for delivering results using a unique approach which is not always well received.

Those at Old Trafford are now having to fight their own fires when it comes to Mourinho, as a troubled start to 2018-19 sees his position called into question, with a former defender suggesting that the current issues have been of United’s own making.

Parker told Love Sport Radio: “When you’re playing the game, you want to give 100 per cent and you should be trying to give 100 per cent but it may not be good enough on that day.

“If Jose is saying he’s giving 100 per cent, it’s not good enough for Manchester United at this moment and quite a bit before that as well. 

“Manchester United haven’t evolved really since he’s been there. We can talk about two trophies, two trophies which he deemed meaningless before he joined Manchester United but he absolutely adored them when he became Manchester United manager. We have to look at performances and performances from day one haven’t been good enough.

“I don’t think it should have allowed a club like Manchester United to go the way they are.

“The reason why they have gone the way they are is that they did go a little bit against the grain with three managers in a short space of time but what they’ve gone and done is, more than anything, when they went to the all-important one after [Louis van Gaal], they went to somebody just for the sake of what they believed and what everyone called him was a winner.

“When you employ Jose Mourinho, you might get someone who can maybe win you trophies but you have to put up with everything else that goes with it.

“He was never right for Manchester United and that has been proven by what has happened now. There are too many unhappy people.

“People can blame up top, they can blame Jose but at the end of the day you have to look at the person who is actually failing the ship and that is Jose Mourinho. He has not done his job properly.”

Mourinho has attempted to steer clear of the questions regarding his future, amid talk of Zinedine Zidane being lined up to take his place, with a number of former players having added their voice to those suggesting that he may be on borrowed time.

Parker is unsure whether the former Real Madrid boss would be the right choice, but he expects imminent change to be on the way.

Asked if defeat to Valencia in the Champions League on Tuesday could spell the end of Mourinho, the ex-England international added: “Winning or losing against Valencia shouldn’t make any difference at all. I think everything is there in front of them already to know that this isn’t going to be a long-term relationship anymore. This isn’t going to be able to carry on.

“It’s just ridiculous what’s going on. The club is not going to be able to get itself back to where it should be in the way it’s being run in this moment in time. It needs a change now.

“Is it a change like straight away going and playing the swashbuckling football? No, because that can’t happen. It needs a change to go and get a bit of love back in that dressing room where the players want to come in, get in the dressing room, laugh and joke, get on the training ground and have a smile, but know when it’s the right time to start working.

“[They need to know they can] get on the pitch and play with the shackles off. So that, if they make a mistake, [they know] they’re not going to get cussed or persecuted for it. I think that’s all it needs and the rest of it will follow, but slowly. You don’t suddenly become Manchester United of old because you’ve suddenly changed the manager.

“Zidane, as he’s been mooted everywhere, is no guarantee.

“You have to remember what he walked into when he got his first proper managerial job. It was incredible what he walked into and he sustained it at Real Madrid which is a difficult job and you have to respect him for that. But now, if he’s going to come into Manchester United, he’s going to be a novice and people have to remember that.

“But football doesn’t allow anything like that. If you’re Zinedine Zidane and you come into Manchester United – sorry, there’s no time for you to get your tracksuit on, you’ve got to go out and win your first game.”

The team’s interim coach says he does not know when – or if – the Barcelona star will return to international duty

Lionel Messi’s international future remains unclear after Argentina’s interim coach Lionel Scaloni said he has not spoken to the Barcelona star about when he will return to the squad.

Messi, who captained Argentina at the World Cup, is yet to comment on when he may be available again, having skipped a pair of friendlies in September.

The 31-year-old, a frustrated figure during Russia 2018, is not included in Scaloni’s squad for games against Iraq and Brazil this month either.

And Scaloni, in charge on a temporary basis as Argentina seek a successor to Jorge Sampaoli, is unclear on when he may be able to select Messi.

“I spoke with Messi about 10 days ago, after the talk we made the final decision he is not to be called up,” Scaloni said at a news conference on Monday.

“We do not talk about what could happen in a while, we talked about how the team played because honestly Leo sees everything. 

“But not beyond that because in my head we have not planned more than six games.”

Messi has previously taken time away from Argentina following the 2016 Copa America Centenario after La Albiceleste lost to Chile on penalties.

However, the star would return and prove instrumental in Argentina qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, which the nation did on the final day of qualifying thanks to a Messi hat-trick against Ecuador. 

While some no doubt hope Messi will again make his return to the team after a break, Argentina legend Diego Maradona has told Messi to retire from international duty, claiming he receives too much criticism for the team’s results.

“The under-15s lose and it’s Messi’s fault,” Maradona told Clarin. “The fixture in Argentina puts Racing against Boca and Messi is to blame. It’s always his fault. I would say, ‘Don’t go anymore’. Let’s see if they can handle it.”

Meanwhile, Juan Foyth and Rodrigo De Paul have been called up to the Argentina squad for the first time for the upcoming Iraq and Brazil matches.

The Brazilian needed less than two minutes to get his team off the mark in north London, banishing memories of a disastrous domestic week

Barcelona wasted no time in making their presence felt in Wednesday’s Champions League date at Wembley by scoring their quickest goal in the competition for 13 years. 

The Catalans were keen to bounce back against Tottenham after a week to forget domestically. 

Two draws and a defeat in the space of six days undermined a fine start to the season for Ernesto Valverde’s men as well as eroding their lead over Real Madrid at the Liga summit. 

Unfortunately for Spurs, the Londoners were the victims of a Barca backlash as Philippe Coutinho needed less than two minutes to put the visitors ahead. 

Coutinho was left with a simple finish after Hugo Lloris’ reckless charge out to meet Jordi Alba had left the net unguarded, and the Brazilian made no mistake to tuck away the first of the game. 

The clock at Wembley, moreover, showed just 92 seconds when the ball crossed the line, making the goal one of Barca’s fastest in Champions League history. 

Mark van Bommel was the last man to hit the target in such rapid fashion, scoring for Barcelona after a mere 36 seconds back in November 2005 against Panathinaikos. 

Coutinho followed up that early flourish by playing in Ivan Rakitic for Barcelona’s second within the first half hour of play. 

With a goal and an assist already at Wembley, his record against Spurs in the Barca shirt is already far superior to his time at Liverpool, during which he struggled to impose himself against the Londoners.

Lionel Messi, who played in a fine ball to Alba to get the move going, is now Barcelona’s sole survivor from the 2005-6 Champions League campaign where Van Bommel hit that record-breaking goal, which was eventually won by Frank Rijkaard’s Blaugrana charges. 

With Coutinho making the difference in Europe having been cup-tied for last season’s knockout stages, will lightning strike again this year for the Catalans in Europe?

The Spurs striker has seen his form and fitness called into question this season, but he continues to silence his detractors in front of goal

Harry Kane has been “criticised for no reason”, according to Sebastien Bassong, with the Tottenham striker still “banging in goals week in and week out”.

On the back of a World Cup summer, the Spurs star has seen his form and fitness questioned in 2018-19.

It has been suggested that international exploits with England, which saw him land the Golden Boot in Russia, have left the 25-year-old tired after so many outings for club and country.

Kane has, however, responded with three goals in his last two outings, taking him to five for the season, and appears set to enjoy another prolific campaign.

Former Tottenham defender Bassong told the Daily Star on those who have been quick to write off a proven performer: “He’s been criticised for no reason because that’s how football is.

“Harry’s been at the top now for the last few years, banging in goals week in and week out.

“He’s been a regular, he’s been playing the World Cup, he’s been captain at the World Cup. 

“What else can you ask from Harry? He’s still young and I’m sure he’s still got a lot to do and he’s not going to disappoint you guys.

“So, what do I make of this criticism? I don’t make anything, honestly, I don’t even listen to them and I hope he doesn’t as well.”

While defending Kane, Bassong has also sought to play down concerns regarding Spurs’ lack of spending over the summer.

Mauricio Pochettino was the only Premier League manager not to bolster his ranks during the last transfer window, but the Argentine is still being backed to deliver a top-four finish.

“It’s the start of the season so I can’t really judge at the moment,” added Bassong, who spent three seasons at White Hart Lane.

“The season is long, especially in the Premier League and they’ve got the Champions League as well. But so far the start isn’t too bad.

“Now people have got expectations from Spurs, a lot of expectations, so I think they’ve got the players to back that expectation and they’ll do a good season.

“I’m not worried about them and I’ve got my faith and trust in them. I think they’ll be contenders for the top four, definitely they’ll be in there.

“There’s loads of good teams in there, it’s getting tougher and tougher.

“But I think they have the experience and they haven’t changed the squad so they know each other, they’ve been working together for a long time and I think that’ll pay off.

“They had a great season last season and I don’t know if they’ll better it this season because I’m not really good for gambling and for predictions.

“But I’m sure they’ll do their best and that it’ll pay off.”

The ex-Chelsea midfielder said it is a tough moment for the United manager and suggested he needs his players to buy into his ideas

Frank Lampard says Jose Mourinho is “a big boy”, but admits he feels for his former boss as the Manchester United manager comes under increasing fire at Old Trafford.

The 40-year-old, who is now the manager of Championship club Derby County, won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup under Mourinho at Chelsea and has made no secrets of his admiration for the Portuguese. 

Manchester United have been struggling in recent weeks, having failed to win any of their last three matches, and pressure has been heaped on the two-time Champions League winner amid reports he has lost the dressing room.

In particular, Mourinho’s rift with Paul Pogba has been thrown under the spotlight after the Frenchman was stripped of the vice-captaincy last week for criticising Mourinho’s tactics following the 1-1 draw with Wolves. 

Lampard added more pressure on Mourinho after his side defeated Manchester United on penalties in the Carabao Cup, but reiterated his admiration for his former boss to reporters, saying: “Everyone knows my feelings for Jose Mourinho as a manager.

“It is a tough moment. It is a moment that we will all have, that I will have at times, that every manager has.

“I have heard all his interviews lately. He is a big boy. He will get about doing his job. Of course I feel for him. They are not winning games and they want to be – it is Manchester United.

“In terms of players, it can be difficult. You need buy-in from your players and you need sometimes the right message to be coming out. I thought that as a player and I think it even more as a manager.

“And you need complete work rate on the pitch. I am not talking about individuals here, I am saying that is what you need.”

Mourinho seemed to take a dig at his players at a press conference on Monday, claiming that some players care more than others about United’s slide of late.

The Reds’ clash against Valencia is highly anticipated with widespread speculation that a bad result could result in Mourinho losing his job. 

It will be the first time United have played at Old Trafford in the Champions League since their shock defeat to Sevilla last season, and the manager will be hoping for a better performance this time out.

The Bundesliga side’s head coach knows his team must get down and dirty in a bid to slow their recent slump

Niko Kovac said “maybe everything was a bit too easy” for Bayern Munich previously after the German giants’ winless streak continued against Ajax in the Champions League.

Mats Hummels’ early opener was cancelled out by Noussair Mazraoui as Bayern were surprisingly held to a 1-1 draw by the Dutch visitors on Tuesday.

Bundesliga holders Bayern have now gone three games without victory in all competitions, having started the season with seven successive wins.

“Nobody expected that. But that’s football. When you fall, you always have the opportunity to get up,” head coach Kovac told Sky Germany about Bayern’s slump.

“Maybe everything was a bit too easy. Now we have to roll up our sleeves. I know what struck the clock, that we did not win three games and we need to focus on the essentials again. That’s not what I imagined personally.

“Now we have to quickly show the face that made us so good in the first seven games.”

Bayern were shocked by Hertha Berlin last week but the Bavarians made a flying start in the Group E clash – Hummels breaking the deadlock in just the fourth minute.

Ajax, however, responded midway through the first half via Mazraoui’s fine strike and it proved to be enough to frustrate Bayern.

“That was certainly not a good game from us,” Kovac said. “We did that very well in the first 15 minutes. Then we played negligently, won too few duels, every second ball was at the opponent.

“We simply played too many bad passes. We wanted too much, too fast. As a result, you build up the opponent and lose confidence. That was a winning point for us in the end. You have to see it that way.”

Bayern star Thomas Muller added: “We certainly had a better phase this season. Our way of playing is in need of improvement.

“We have to stay tuned, something else does not help us. We have to sort the bones and fix everything on Saturday. In football you have to look forward.”

The manager praised his team’s comeback against Shakhtar Donetsk but admitted they were outplayed badly in the first half

Bruno Genesio admitted his team was outplayed in the first half but argued a draw was the right result after Lyon fought back from a two-goal deficit to snatch a point against Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday.

Moussa Dembele and Leo Dubois struck 119 seconds apart in the second half as the home side salvaged an unconvincing 2-2 draw to remain top of Group F in the Champions League.

Lyon’s performance until the late rescue act fell some way short of the clinical counter-attacking display they produced to beat Manchester City a fortnight ago.

But with supporters locked out of Groupama Stadium due to UEFA sanctions, Genesio took heart from the inner drive his team demonstrated in grinding out a result.

“If you want to be positive you have to remember the second half,” he told a news conference.

“We completely messed up the first half. They managed to get the ball out from the back too easily. We were dominated everywhere, physically and tactically.

“The plan was a high block and pressing but when we did it, we did it very badly. We were not compact enough.

“We managed to produce a reaction and that’s important. Overall, I think a draw was a fair result. I think that when we are two goals down in these conditions, without a crowd, it’s hard to come back in the game.

“Memphis Depay brought us a lot when he came on with his technical quality. I will hold on to the second half.”

Shakhtar boss Paulo Fonseca unsurprisingly felt as though the visitors squandered two points, having led comfortably until a costly loss of concentration on 70 minutes.

Brazilian striker Junior Moraes had earlier netted a brace that ultimately left the Ukrainian outfit third in the group following a 2-2 home draw with Hoffenheim on the opening matchday.

“It’s a pity we ended the game like that because we deserved more than just a draw,” Fonseca said.

“After conceding the second goal, the team reacted very well and created a few more chances.

“We showed we have personality and courage. Not many sides could come here and do what we did. I’m proud of my players. We have presented Shakhtar in the best light.”

The Blues striker was the match winner versus the Hungarian champions, but it was almost another bad night for him at Stamford Bridge

The Fernando Torres comparisons have been around for almost a year now for Alvaro Morata – but his form was becoming so bad that he was in danger of being regarded as an even poorer signing than his compatriot.

Like Torres before him, Morata broke Chelsea’s transfer record when signed for £58 million ($75m) plus add-ons from Real Madrid in the summer of 2017.

Life at Stamford Bridge started promisingly for the Spain international, but below-par performances have been an increasingly regular sight for the ex-Juventus forward.

Thursday’s Europa League clash against Vidi, though, was developing into something quite special even by his standards.He squandered five first-half chances, then failed to even get his head on a pin-point cross from Willian after the interval.

For a striker, though, it is most worrying when the chances stop coming. For a period against the Hungarians they did, but after 70 minutes he combined brilliantly with Cesc Fabregas and Willian to score, thereby saving his face and that of his team.

The finish was a fine one, too, as he volleyed past Tomas Tujvel to make it 1-0 in what on paper was Chelsea’s easiest Group L game.

The celebration, meanwhile, was more one of relief than joy in what was the poorest performance under Maurizio Sarri to date.

Morata needs as many goals as possible against whatever opposition his manager selects him to play after dropping below the equally goal shy Olivier Giroud in the pecking order.

The 25-year-old had already professed his loyalty to Chelsea, despite a summer of transfer rumours linking him with a move back to Italy, but the goals have not, so far, followed.

A solitary strike against Arsenal this season showed that Sarri might have the same problems that Antonio Conte had with his big signing, but he still has time to rectify his poor beginning in English football.

Thursday’s winning goal isn’t enough on its own to repair his reputation, and the run of goals that fans had hoped for after his brilliant Arsenal strike needs to follow.

The Blues have been over-reliant on Eden Hazard this season, during which they are so far undefeated, and they were struggling so much against Vidi that he was thrown on as a second-half substitute.

The Belgian has seven goals this season – as many as Morata, Giroud, Pedro and Willian combined – yet it is upon Morata the expectation of being the other scorer leading marksman falls.

Owner Roman Abramovich will still want his transfer fee repaid at some point and his four goals in 2018 are just not enough.

In truth, Chelsea were poor all over the pitch and afforded Vidi four or five fine chances of their own – this after producing two great performances against Liverpool in the league and cup – but it was going forward where they appeared most deficient.

Ironically, Torres actually thrived in the Europa League and played a major role in their 2013 success.

Nevertheless, the Spaniard is still remembered as a Stamford Bridge flop, and if Morata does not want to be remembered simply as ‘another Torres’, he must pull his shooting boots on in every competition. This, however, was a decent start.

Julen Lopetegui is under pressure after his side failed to score for the third successive game, losing 1-0 away to CSKA Moscow.

Real Madrid are on the club’s worst scoring run for over 11 years after a Champions League loss to CSKA Moscow left Julen Lopetegui’s side without a goal in three games.

Madrid battered Roma 3-0 at home in the first game of their latest Champions League defence last month, but the Spanish giants have only found the net once since that win.

A scrappy 1-0 win over Espanyol was followed by a shock 3-0 away defeat at the hands of Sevilla. Lopetegui then saw his side held to a goalless draw at home by Atletico Madrid on Saturday.

Nikola Vlasic scored after 65 seconds to earn CSKA a memorable Group G win at the Luzhniki Stadium on Tuesday, with Lopetegui left to ponder his team’s problems in front of goal.

Madrid, who only signed Mariano Diaz to replace Cristiano Ronaldo, had 26 shots against CSKA, the most they have hit without scoring in a Champions League game since Opta began recording such data in 2003-04.

Casemiro, Karim Benzema and Mariano were all denied by the woodwork but goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev, who was sent off in added time, had few saves to make with Madrid only getting four of their efforts on target.