Celtic ‘warrior’ suffers int’l break injury

Celtic right-back Anthony Ralston appears to have picked up an injury scare on international duty with Scotland, VideoCelts report.

The Lowdown: Injury concerns

There are nine Scottish Premiership fixtures to go with the Hoops currently nine points clear of rivals Rangers at the top of the table. A domestic treble is also on the cards for Postecoglou and his side, with a Scottish Cup semi-final with Rangers at Hampden Park scheduled for the end of April.

However, Ange Postecoglou has a number of off-field concerns heading into the run-in, with Liel Abada, Daizen Maeda, Sead Haksabanovic, Greg Taylor, Aaron Mooy, Reo Hatate and Cameron Carter-Vickers all dealing with injury issues.

The Hoops boss appears to have been handed another injury scare during the break, with an update emerging on Ralston.

The Latest: Training knock

Ralston was included in the Scotland squad for European Championship qualifiers against Cyprus and Spain, however, the Celtic full-back didn’t make the squad in a 3-0 win over Cyprus on Saturday.

VideoCelts have reported in the last 48 hours that Ralston didn’t make the 22-man squad as he actually picked up a knock in training on Friday and will return to Celtic as a result.

The Verdict: Not ideal

The club’s medical team appear to have their hands full at Lennoxtown, so this news on Ralston certainly isn’t ideal. The 24-year-old has made just 12 appearances under Postecoglou this season so hasn’t exactly been a regular, with January signing Alistair Johnston establishing himself as first choice since arriving.

However, the pair provide Postecoglou with plenty of versatility, with Ralston and Johnston capable of turning out as right-midfielders if needed, while the latter of the two can also turn out as a centre-back if required.

Therefore, with a number of injury issues to deal with, Ralston may have been a player in Postecoglou’s thoughts ahead of the trip to Ross County. The Hoops boss has even hailed the right-back previously for playing when not fully fit, describing Ralston as a ‘warrior’.

“He’s been enormous for us all year and he continues to be.

“He wasn’t even 100% tonight, with his ankle. But he’s a warrior, he’s a soldier, he loves this football club and he wants to make a career for himself.”

Therefore, should Ralston’s injury prove to be minor following a Lennonxtown assessment, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Postecoglou looked into selecting the defender in his matchday squad next weekend.