Postecoglou braced for Celtic struggle in cup semi-final

Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou is bracing himself for a St Johnstone struggle at Hampden Park on Saturday.

The two sides meet in the semi-final of the League Cup for the chance to play Rangers or Hibernian, who clash at the national stadium on Sunday, in the December final.

Postecoglou expects Callum Davidson’s side to do everything in their power to hold on to the trophy – one of the two domestic cups they won last season – but hopes his troops resume their encouraging pre-international break form which brought one draw and seven wins in their last eight matches in all competitions.

The former Australia manager, who is “hugely” looking forward to his first trip to Hampden Park, said of the Perth side: “They had a fantastic season last year, they won two trophies and they showed that in the big games they are up to the task and they are not going to fear anyone.

“From our perspective, we are expecting a tough challenge but to be fair whoever you play in the semi-final of a tournament, you know it is not going to be an easy game.

“It is going to be a struggle, an arm-wrestle, it is going to be competitive, there is going to be some nervousness in both sides because you know the consequences of success and failure, everything is decided on the day.

“It is going to be a typical cup game where both sides will put their best foot forward and from our perspective it is about making sure we play our football as we have been, we have been in good form, home, away, in all competitions.”