NafisaMartin O’Neill has indicated that Daizen Maeda is edging closer to being fit in time for Sunday’s meeting with Rangers.
The Japanese forward was seen leaving the pitch at Easter Road on Sunday with a noticeable limp and without a boot, raising concerns he could miss this weekend’s crucial Old Firm encounter.
Maeda, 28, has found his rhythm again in recent weeks, scoring four goals across his last three outings.
And O’Neill is optimistic he will be able to call upon the in-form Celtic attacker against Danny Rohl’s side.
He told Celtic TV: “He’s making good progress. That’s good news.
“He is definitely doing well. We’ve got a few days yet. He’ll want to play.
“There’s no doubt at all about it. He’s had a new lease of life in recent weeks.
“He’s been terrific for us.
“So I think that even at this early stage of the week, I’d be very confident that he would be on the field.”
Meanwhile, O’Neill expects Celtic to come up against a side hurting after Rangers saw their title hopes take a major blow at Tynecastle.
The Gers slipped to a 2-1 defeat against league leaders Hearts on Monday night, falling further away from contention for the title.
It now looks like a straight battle between Hearts and Celtic, but O’Neill is aware the Ibrox outfit will be determined to disrupt the champions’ push for a fifth consecutive title.
He said: “A very strong challenge, obviously. You mentioned this about the wounded animal.
“I think that if we look back last week, they played exceptionally well in the first half against Hearts.
“They were in complete control of the game and got the goal to go in front.
“Hearts were obviously going to have a reaction. You can’t be leading that league for that length of time and not have something.
“And they did, and I think that it seemed as if it spooked Rangers a little bit.
“So that was that game last week. They’ve lost the match, they’re now seven points behind Hearts.
“And from that viewpoint, certainly from a Hearts or Rangers viewpoint, it looks a long way off.
“You’re looking for a lot of favours from people. There’ll be some drama to unfold at some stage.”
Nafisa
