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Celtic host Hearts at Celtic Park in the Scottish Premiership second phase action on Saturday.
The hosts have a six-point lead at the top of the standings and will be looking to bounce back from a 1-1 draw against Rangers at home in the previous outing.
Hearts finished third in the first phase and were held to a goalless draw by Ross County in their previous outing. This will be the fifth meeting between the two sides this season.
They have squared off thrice in league fixtures while also meeting once in the Scottish League Cup. Celtic have three wins to their name while the visitors have picked up just one win against the Glasgow giants in their four meetings this term.
Celtic vs Hearts Head-to-Head
The two rivals have crossed paths 329 times across all competitions, with their first one dating back to the 1890-91 campaign. As expected, the hosts have been the better side in the fixture and have recorded 184 wins against their eastern rivals.
Hearts have come out on top 76 times while 69 games have ended in draws. They last met in a league fixture at Tynecastle Park in January. The game ended in a 2-1 win for the Bhoys.
Celtic form guide (all competitions): D-W-L-W-W
Hearts form guide (all competitions): D-W-W-W-D
Celtic vs Hearts Team News
Celtic
Josip Juranovic will miss the game with a knock picked up a couple of weeks ago. He is the only absentee for the hosts and Anthony Ralston is expected to deputize for him here.
Injured: Josip Juranovic
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Hearts
The Jam Tarts have a few injury concerns in their trip to Glasgow. Michael Smith, Beni Baningime, John Souttar and Craig Halkett are all sidelined at the moment.
While Baningime is a long-term absentee with an ACL injury, Souttar is expected to return in time for the Scottish Cup final later this month.
Injured: Craig Halkett, Michael Smith, Beni Baningime, John Souttar
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Celtic vs Hearts Predicted XIs
Celtic (4-3-3): Joe Hart (GK); Greg Taylor, Carl Starfelt, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Anthony Ralston; Reo Hatate, Callum McGregor, Matthew O'Riley; Daizen Maeda, Jota, Kyogo Furuhashi
Hearts (3-4-1-2): Craig Gordon (GK); Stephen Kingsley, Toby Sibbick, Taylor Moore; Andrew Halliday, Peter Haring, Ben Woodburn, Nathaniel Atkinson; Barrie McCay; Liam Boyce, Ellis Simms
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Celtic vs Hearts Prediction
A win here would effectively seal the title for the home side, so they are expected to go all-in for the three points here. While they seem to have the upper hand on paper, the visitors have also done well for themselves this term.
Hearts have the third-best attacking and defensive record this term and might be able to put up a challenge here. Nonetheless, given the recent head-to-head record between the two sides, Celtic should come out on top here.
Prediction: Celtic 2-1 Hearts
