There is an anxious wait ahead of kick-off this afternoon given the concerns around player availability for Rangers game at Livingston.
In defence and midfield, late decisions are expected as intimated by the manager for the rest against David Martindale’s team and with one eye on the Viaplay Cup final next week, one or two precautions may need to be taken.
Over the last few days in training and from the boss’ press conference, there have been question marks against the likes of Ben Davies, John Lundstram, Ryan Jack and Nicolas Raskin. Then up front, as much as Kemar Roofe could be doing with more game time it is far from ideal to take too much of a risk on Livi’s artificial surface. The same can be said of Jack.
Michael Beale stated on Thursday:
“It’s a mixed bag this week. John Lundstram’s touch and go, we had a slight issue with Connor last week so we gave him the rest in the game, he was there if we needed him. Nico Raskin had some issues after the game, Ryan Jack’s got a little bit. There’s no one else coming back right now so we’ll see how we go after training tomorrow.”
“It’s all a little bit up in the air I would say in terms of selection right now but we go there with a strong squad regardless with who’s available.”
Some players could be asked to do a job for the team, with perhaps Malik Tillman or Todd Cantwell occupying a more conventional midfield berth. There could even be a continuation of James Sands in defence, following on from last Sunday.
As much as three points are crucial today, the task next week is even greater with the obvious reward on the line. The players given the responsibility against Livingston simply must get the job done.