Manager: We're fully focused on tomorrow's match against Livingston

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Celtic F.C.

·22 Agustus 2025

Manager: We're fully focused on tomorrow's match against Livingston

Celtic are back in league action tomorrow (Saturday, August 23) with Livingston the visitors to Paradise for the 3pm kick-off.

The Celts go in to the game on the back of a 0-0 draw against FC Kairat in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round on Wednesday night, which means the Hoops now have to win in Kazakhstan next week if they are to progress to the UCL league phase.

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Speaking to the media today at Lennoxtown, Brendan Rodgers said that he and his team are only concerned with tomorrow’s match at Celtic Park.

“Our full focus is on tomorrow,” the Celtic manager said. “That’s the reality. You just can’t bypass the next game and go straight to Tuesday.

“I haven’t even thought about that game too much. We’ve analysed Wednesday’s game, and we’ll refresh our team tomorrow because it is a massive game for us on Tuesday.

‘But our focus is very much on our game against Livingston.’

“We have a game to perform well in at home and continue with our really good start domestically, and we want to continue with that tomorrow.

“I believe when that game comes around on Tuesday, we’ll be in a very good place to get through.”

The Champions have had a perfect start to their domestic campaign, with victories over St Mirren and Aberdeen in the league as well as a 4-1 win over Falkirk in the League Cup.

Livingston, on the other hand, have had a mixed start to the season, with David Martindale’s side beginning the campaign with a draw against Kilmarnock and then a 3-1 win over Falkirk, before crashing out of the League Cup with a 2-0 defeat against Hibernian.

Ahead of Saturday's match at Paradise, Brendan Rodgers said that he expects a tough match, as he also looked ahead to meeting up with the Livingston manager again.

"I really like David and I’ve still been in contact with him," he said. "I like his passion and he’s done a brilliant job at Livingston. I’m so happy for him and his club that they’re back in the Premiership.

“They did really well to get promoted last year, they’ve had a good result against Falkirk so they’ll come to us and want to do well in the game.

“David’s sides always make it difficult for you. They’ll look to get balls in to the box and we’ll have to be really on the game to get a result.”