Despite having a tantalising trip to the Bernabeu on Wednesday, Livingston manager David Martindale expects visitors Celtic to be fully focused as the two sides square off today, writes Angus McGregor.
The Lions host the champions before Ange Postecoglou’s side make the trip to Spain to face Champions League holders Real Madrid in the final game of the group stages.
Although Celtic are unable to advance in the tournament, Martindale is sure that his counterpart will be looking to test his squad and himself against the world’s elite.
He said: "I don’t know Ange personally but I know Celtic Football Club and I’ve watched Ange in the media and I think they’ll be going to Madrid to try to impose their game-plan on Madrid."
Martindale conceded that one eye may be on their next game, however due to their ethos and mentality, the standards won’t be dropping.
He added: "I think he’s quite relentless in his approach to every game. He’s got the players in a similar mindset, so I don’t think they’ll be coming here thinking about the game on Wednesday. It’ll be, ‘we need to go and deal with Livingston and then focus on Madrid”.
Celtic will be wary of the threat that Livingston offer, with the Lions taking 13 points off the Glasgow side since returning to the top flight, the most outside of city rivals Rangers. Last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Ibrox showed how Livi are still a nuisance to the Old Firm, with Joel Nouble proving a threat in these big matches.
The striker’s early spin and finish saw him score his third of the season, with two coming against Rangers. Martindale praised his new talisman, although joked about his presence in other league fixtures.
He said: "I would rather he had scored against the other nine than the two. He seems to relish the big games but the style of play from teams that are perceived to be better than us is a wee bit different, which helps Joel.
"If you play someone sitting 10th in the league they might sit behind the ball and deny space. But he’s scored some big goals for us this season. If he can keep adding to his numbers I don’t think it will be any surprise if he’s not at Livingston”.
Cristian Montano went off injured in the first-half of last weekend’s game against Rangers, with Martindale admitting that injuries may leave him a little short on the bench this Sunday.
He said: "We’ve got a few niggles and a few knocks, so we’ll probably struggle to fill the bench but we’re still going to be very strong in terms of starting XI."
Don't miss the latest news from the West Lothian Courier. Sign up to our free newsletter here
