Scottish Football / John Girvan / 19 December 2008 /

After Celtic threw Rangers a lifeline by drawing at home to Hearts and subsequently chose to hang their dirty linen out in public, John Girvan reckons the Bhoys are a lay for a fourth successive SPL title. Meanwhile, local bragging rights and three vital relegation battle points are up for grabs in a Lanarkshire derby.

After Aiden McGeady and Gordon Strachan were involved in a heated exchange following last weekend's 1-1 draw with Hearts, the fall-out came to the fore when Celtic released this statement;

"Following a breach of club discipline, Celtic manager Gordon Strachan has suspended Aiden McGeady from training with the first team for two weeks and has fined the player two weeks' wages. Gordon's decision has the full support of the Celtic Board of Directors"

The big question is: Why have Celtic hung their dirty linen out in public?

The pair were rumoured to have had a bust-up in the aftermath of the Old Firm defeat in August and now Strachan has decided the youngster is getting above his station. With a trip to Ibrox on the horizon and McGeady now seemingly out for two weeks, it appears Strachan might have just cut off his nose to spite his face when the matter could surely have been dealt with behind closed doors.

It remains to be seen whether Celtic have delivered themselves a blow in the title race. They are favourites to win a fourth consecutive title at [1.51] but have two away games in six days to negotiate, one at Ibrox, and both perhaps without McGeady and the injured Shaun Maloney.

I suggested two weeks ago that Celtic were a lay in this market at [1.41] and since they remain on the short side I still feel the same. Rangers have tightened from [3.5] a fortnight ago to [2.68] at present but they could get shorter.

They face a home tie 23 hours ahead of Celtic's trip to Falkirk this weekend. With three points on the board by 4:45pm on Saturday, the gap will be down to a single point and Celtic will be under a certain degree of pressure to maintain the four point gap ahead of the Old Firm game. Rangers looked to have blown it last week after only managing a point from the early kick-off at Tannadice but Celtic then threw them a lifeline by failing to take advantage at home to Hearts.

Hibernian have a decent record at Ibrox. They lost 2-1 on their last visit but were responsible for Rangers last home defeat in the league back in October 2007 and can boast a pair of 3-0 wins in Govan recently; first through a league match in August 2005 and then a Scottish Cup tie in February 2006. They recorded back to back wins for only the second time last week but are on a run of three wins and two draws from their last six outings. This has seen them rise to fifth in the table, four points behind Dundee United.

With seven wins from eight matches, backing Rangers at home is returning a profit this season. It's nothing to write home about however and they are short again on Saturday at [1.36] in the Match Odds. At this price it's perhaps a selection for the weekend multiple but the [1.86] on offer for Hibernian +1.5 goals in the Asian Handicap Market appeals. It's important that Rangers win and I'm sure they will, but with only three clean sheets at Ibrox this season and a vulnerable looking defence it might be close.

It could also be tight at The Falkirk stadium where Celtic look for a first win in three SPL outings. The current champions were on a great run of victories until the defeat at Hibs was followed by a home draw with Hearts. The performance wasn't quite up to scratch last week but the Old Firm rarely slip up before an important meeting and this is the kind of match Celtic grind out a victory from.

Despite playing nice football, Falkirk lack killer instinct. The weather could be a leveller on Sunday as the Falkirk Stadium, completely open on one side, seems to be a wind trap that can play havoc for spectators and advocates of total football. Rangers struggled here on a wet opening day and were fortunate to escape with a narrow 1-0 victory.

It's a big game, they all are when you are chasing a league championship but I expect Celtic to show a bit of character. They know Rangers will be watching closely with an eye on any weaknesses they can exploit at Ibrox the following Saturday. Falkirk have scored once in each of their last six but I like the look of Celtic to keep a clean sheet at [2.24]. Celtic at [1.48] in the Match Odds is decent and it might pay dividends to cover the 0-1 and 0-2 correct score lines at [8.4] and [8.8] respectively.

Elsewhere, Saturday's Lanarkshire derby can't go unmentioned especially with the match being shown live on Setanta Sports. Hamilton haven't played host to local rivals Motherwell since the 1988/89 Season and the home crowd would love a repeat of the 1-0 victory. The visitors are bottom of the SPL form table at present however so another win isn't out of the question.

This is a bottom of the table clash so both sides "form" doesn't make great reading with Motherwell boasting just one point from their last six league matches and Hamilton with only one win and a draw from the same period. Looking at the positives, at least Hamilton are scoring with a goal in five of their last six whilst The Steelmen have only a single strike to their name in this time.

Hamilton have nothing to lose, they are everyone's bankers to go down but despite some heavy defeats they keep plugging away and pop up with the odd result every few weeks. Well' could be in real trouble here and will be dreading defeat as it would draw Hamilton level with them on 17 points. Accies' will have a go and will certainly play with more confidence than their visitors. For me the [2.98] on the hosts is good value but those who like to play it safe will be opting for Hamilton -0 at [2.08] in the Asian Handicap Market.

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