Hamilton v Celtic preview: Hoops can move within two points of title with victory at Accies
Friday 6 April 2018 16:07, UK
Celtic can move within two points of sealing their seventh-straight Scottish Premiership title at relegation-threatened Hamilton on Sunday.
The Hoops were held to a 0-0 draw by Dundee in midweek, but are 10 points clear of Aberdeen, their nearest challengers, with six games to play.
Craig Gordon made his comeback in that game within nine weeks of suffering knee ligament damage against Hibs in January, the latest in a line of issues the 35-year-old has faced in his career, including a two-year lay-off with a tendon injury in his other knee while at Sunderland.
He said: "When these things come along, even if the worst case scenario is that it's career-ending, I have still done remarkably well to come back.
"I am not a young player anymore. I can deal with that and I have already had what could have been the end of my career and managed to come back from that so whenever that time comes, whether it is the end of my career through my choice or through an injury, it probably doesn't hold as much weight as it would to someone else.
"I have managed to play 200 extra games in my career and that is just for Celtic, not including Scotland games, when I thought I wasn't going to play another one.
"So whatever happens from now on is always going to be a lot easier to deal with."
Tough away games at Kilmarnock and Hibernian have left Hamilton without a win in three, but a run of three games without defeat prior to those back-to-back losses have given them five points worth of breathing space from the relegation dogfight.
With the league splitting into two for the final five games of the season, their resurgence could not have been better timed, with each of the other teams in the bottom half of the table still to come.
Team news
Alex Gogic and Darren Jamieson remain unavailable for Hamilton, but there are no new injury worries for Martin Canning.
Patrick Roberts and Leigh Griffiths, both back from injury, could get run-outs for Celtic as they look to boost their numbers for the final weeks of the season.
Opta facts
Hamilton have only won one of their previous 20 top-flight meetings with Celtic, with their sole victory coming back in October 2014 (1-0 at Celtic Park) - they've lost nine of their last 10 since.
The Bhoys have won both league meetings so far this season, netting seven times and conceding just twice.
The Accies haven't won three consecutive top-flight home games since September 2015.
Celtic have only failed to score in three of their last 38 away league games, though those three have come in their last seven on the road.
Scott Sinclair has scored three goals in two games against Hamilton this season, including a brace at the SuperSeal Stadium back in September.
