Celtic midfielder James McCarthy is set for a spell on the sidelines after picking up an injury in training ahead of tonight's Premiership game against Motherwell. 

The Lowdown: Celtic in action

The Hoops are back in action with an away clash at Fir Park, following on from their 4-2 home win over Dundee United last weekend.

Tonight's showdown is Celtic's penultimate game before the World Cup break, as Ange Postecoglou's side will be taking on Ross County on Saturday in front of their home crowd.

Unfortunately, it appears that one man in the Hoops' squad has suffered an injury blow ahead of tonight's game.

The Latest: McCarthy injury blow

Speaking ahead of the clash against Motherwell, Postecoglou confirmed that McCarthy has shipped a "significant" hamstring knock which has ruled him out of action.

The Celtic manager said: "James McCarthy, unfortunately, picked up a hamstring injury in training. He will miss out - it's quite a significant one. Obviously with the break coming, he will be back training by the group [after the break]."

The Verdict: A worry for McCarthy

The 31-year-old has only made five appearances for the Bhoys across all competitions this season totalling 62 minutes, which might suggest that he isn't a particularly important player for the club.

With that in mind, this injury blow seems to be more of an issue for McCarthy rather than Celtic, who have been doing quite well without having him on the pitch for the majority of the season.

Nonetheless, this will still be an unfortunate setback for Postecoglou, as it deprives him of one option in his squad, which could be even more galling should any of his other midfielders pick up an injury.

Therefore, it's probably a good thing that the Hoops have a lengthy break ahead of them, as that will give McCarthy the chance to recover without having to miss too many games.