Referee Euan Anderson is set to be the man in the middle for Celtic in their game tonight in the Scottish Premiership.
The title race in Scotland looks as if it could go down to the wire this season, as Ange Postecoglou’s men go into tonight’s game with just a three-point lead over their Glasgow rivals at the top of the table.
So to make sure they get over the line, there really can’t be that many slip-ups between now and the end of the campaign, but it appears as though they might have been given a major boost when it comes to the referee in charge tonight against St. Mirren.
Anderson is set to be flanked by Daniel McFarlane and Jonathan Bell, with Don Robertson taking on fourth official duties, and taking a look at the stats, Celtic should be feeling incredibly happy with the Scottish FA’s choice of putting Anderson in charge.
What do the stats say?
As per Transfermarkt, Anderson has taken charge of Celtic 11 times over the years, with the Bhoys winning on nine of those occasions, but on top of that, it appears as though they tend to be on their best behaviour whenever Anderson is holding the whistle, only receiving nine yellow cards and one red card during that timespan.
Although, if history does tell us one thing, it’s that a spot-kick shouldn’t be on the cards tonight, as he’s only given out two when refereeing the Bhoys and just the three overall in the Scottish Premiership this campaign (as per Transfermarkt).
TIF Verdict on referee appointment…
Will Celtic win the league this season?
Yes
No
Whilst Celtic are likely to be heavy favourites against St. Mirren tonight with the visitors sitting eighth in the table, arguably the most important factor will be making sure that they keep themselves away from suspension and making sure they don’t miss anyone for parts of the run-in between now and the end of the campaign.
Judging by how the past has gone, they seem to have a decent chance of doing that given how Anderson appears to keep his cards mostly in his pockets – you just have to hope that it stays this way for them tonight.
In other news: Big update emerges: Ange simply can’t allow 24 y/o to walk away from Celtic – opinion