Celtic v Falkirk – Team News, match officials and where to watch | OneFootball

Celtic take on Falkirk this evening in the Premier Sports League Cup with a place in the quarter-finals at stake. It’s the first Friday night action at Celtic Park since a win over Dundee a decade ago and for many Celtic supporter’s it will be their first taste of Friday night football at Paradise.

Brendan Rodgers’s side goes into the match on the back of two openings round wins in the Scottish Premiership against St Mirren at Parkhead and Aberdeen at Pittodrie. The Hoops have scored three goals – all coming from midfielders – and have yet to concede. So the Celtic manager will be looking to his forwards to get among the goals.

Scott Bain signs for Falkirk on a free transfer from Celtic. Photo Falkirk FC

Falkirk were worthy opponents in this competition last year and were competitive in the match while still a Championship side. Eventually Celtic put the tie to bed but the 5-2 scoreline perhaps fails to tell the story of that entertaining encounter.

Tonight will also see Scott Bain return to Paradise since his decision to leave Celtic in the summer in order to get play first team games. He’s sure to receive a warm welcome from his former teammates and also from the Celtic support.

Brendan Rodgers praises Falkirk manager John McGlynn

Brendan Rodgers was full of praise for Falkirk manager John McGlynn who worked with the Celtic manager at Celtic during his first spell in charge of the Hoops.

“Yeah, I’m so happy for him as a guy and his footballing,” Brendan said at his media conference yesterday afternoon. “I think what John has demonstrated in his time since he’s gone back into management that talent and technique will always override power.

Aberdeen v Celtic – Celtic Manager Brendan Rodgers during the Scottish Premiership match between Aberdeen and Celtic at Pittodrie on 10 August 2025. Photo Stephen Dobson PSI (IMAGO)

“Unless you have the resources and the money to get power and technique and talent, then it’s sometimes a difficult ask and especially when you’re trying to play football.

“And I look at his teams at Raith and I look at what he’s done here now at Falkirk and bringing them up, and you see how they play and you see the attitude and energy they have in the game and the technical qualities that they have in the game.

“Him and Paul, his assistant, they’ve done a brilliant job and I am just so pleased for them because at the end there was a wee bit of a nervousness last year at the end, but they got the job done and I watched the game and it was a great night for them.

John McGlynn, Manager of Falkirk FC acknowledges the fans after the Premier Sports Cup Quarter Final between Celtic and Falkirk at Celtic Park on September 22, 2024. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

“He deserves all the accolades he gets. He’s been absolutely fantastic and like I said, they’ve demonstrated their game idea and how they want to play and they have an inherent belief in that. And that football philosophy has led Falkirk to get promoted for the first time in years. So well done to him, his staff and his players and for us, we don’t underestimate them tomorrow night. We’ll be ready from the first whistle to be really aggressive in the game.”

Celtic Team News

Just an Ordinary Bhoy on The Celtic Star this morning reckoned it would an impossible task to second guess Brendan Rodgers’s team selection for this evening as the Celtic manager – even if he didn’t admit it yesterday – will inevitably have one eye on the UEFA Champions League match against Kairat Almaty, with the prestige and the riches of the Group stages at stake – it’s £40m in case you need reminding.

So it looks like I’ve got the short straw so here goes.

Brendan may think about playing Vil Sinisalo tonight but I reckon he’ll want Kasper Scmeichel to have the 90 minutes to get him as match sharp as possible for midweek. So Kasper gets the gloves.

Kasper Schmeichel in control as Leighton Clarkson of Aberdeen stretches for the ball during the Scottish Premiership match between Aberdeen and Celtic at Pittodrie on 10 August 2025. Photo Stephen Dobson PSI (IMAGO).

I expect Kieran Tierney to sit this one out and the same goes for the rest of the settled back four so no places in the starting eleven for Alistair Johnston, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Liam Scales.

That means we could see Jahmai make is debut in a central defensive partnership with Auston Trusty and Anthony Ralston playing at right back with Japanese summer signing Hayato Inamura coming in at left-back.

All change in midfield too with Luke McCowan, Paulo Bernardo and Arne Engels starting – Bernardo picked up an injury against Falkirk in the cup tie against Falkirk last year and that really did derail his season.

That means that Callum McGregor, Benjamin Nygren and Reo Hatate all drop to the bench with midweek in mind.

As for the front three James Forrest won’t start so expect a return for Yang who also got the nod on lag day against St Mirren. Adam Idah will play and needs to find a goal from somewhere to avoid dropping out of the starting XI going forward. And that means that Daizen Maeda will need to stay out on the left wing.

That will give Brenda a strong bench which should hopefully include Shin Yamada and Johnny Kenny.

Of course Brendan might go the other way and start his strongest possible XI so if that happens forget all about the above.

Match Officials

Referee John Beaton shows Liam Scales a yellow card during the Scottish Premiership match between Aberdeen and Celtic at Pittodrie on 10 August 2025. Photo Stephen Dobson PSI (IMAGO)

A Rookie Referee plus John Beaton’s on VAR was the headline earlier in the week on The Celtic Star. Lloyd Wilson has been named referee for Celtic’s Friday night Premier Sports League Cup last 16 encounter against Falkirk.

Match referee Lloyd Wilson Kilmarnock v East Fife, Premier Sports Cup, Group H, Football, The BSSP Stadium Rugby Park, Kilmarnock on 26 July 2025.. Photo Garry McHarg/Shutterstock

The Scottish FA has confirmed that the 33 year-old will take charge of his first ever game of his refereeing career at Celtic Park when the hosts face off against the Scottish Premiership newcomers.

Wilson has only handled eight top-flight matches last season spending majority of his season in either the Scottish Championship or Scottish League One. He did have some Premier Sports Cup experience a few weeks ago taking charge of the Kilmarnock v East Fife match at Rugby Park.

Match referee Lloyd Wilson Kilmarnock v East Fife, Premier Sports Cup, Group H, Football, The BSSP Stadium Rugby Park, Kilmarnock on 26 July 2025.. Photo Garry McHarg/Shutterstock

The inexperienced whistler was not involved in a game last Saturday, and the previous match he was in the middle for was Airdrieonians against Ross County on the opening weekend of the Championship season.

Wilson will be joined on-field by Assistant Referee 1 Chris Rae and Assistant Referee 2 Graham McNeillie. Meanwhile, John Beaton is at Clydesdale House manning VAR duties with David Roome supporting him on AVAR.

Kick-off Time

The Celtic v Falkirk Premier Sports Cup tie kicks off at Celtic Park this evening at 7.45pm. The match will be played to a finish so if level after 90 minutes we will go to extra-time and maybe even penalties.

Where to Watch

The game is as you would expect live on Premier Sports with the build-up beginning at 7.15pm. The match is also live on Celtic TV for subscribers based outside of Britain and Ireland.

Predicted Score

Another entertaining game with Falkirk playing their football. Expect Scott Bain to have a busy night as players look to catch the manager’s eye ahead of the Champions League play-off. So I reckon that Celtic will win 3-1.

Enjoy your Friday night at Paradise and I’ll see you there!

COYBIG

CELTIC IN THE EIGHTIES BY DAVID POTTER, FOREWORD BY DANNY McGRAIN is published by Celtic Star Books on the fifth day of September. You can pre-order now to guarantee your copy which will be signed by Danny McGrain, with just a limited number of signed copies still available, although they are selling very quickly.

Missing Attachment

Missing Attachment

And there’s another great benefit for readers who pre-order their copy of Celtic in the Eighties. You will also receive a copy of an earlier David Potter book – Celtic’ Icicle – Alec McNair – which you’ll receive for FREE when you pre-order with Celtic in the Eighties. So you get two great Celtic books by David Potter and better still the postage is only charged on one. Click on the image below to order. (Just order Celtic in the Eighties and we’ll automatically add a copy of the Alec McNair book).

Celtic in the Eighties by David Potter. Foreword by Danny McGrain. Published on Celtic Star Books on 5 September 2025. Click on image to pre-order.

Help raise funds for Celtic Youth Academy by playing the Celtic Pools Weekly Lottery and you could win up to £25,000. The lottery is £1 per week. Click on image to join.