Celtic vs Aberdeen - Preview

A closer look at Aberdeen, on form in the league, in line with Scottish crapness in Europe

It is with some trepidation that Celtic encounter Aberdeen on Sunday.

Losing four matches on the bounce is a new experience for most of them, and certainly not whilst at Celtic.

Confidence must be low, and chatter about player unrest with Wilfried Nancy and the new coaching team persists.

They really could catch a break. Which would be more likely, could the players maintain the intent to stick to the game plan for something close to 90 minutes? Losing faith, resorting to hoof ball, and ill-discipline have plagued Nancy’s short tenure.

The Dons come to Glasgow feeling reasonably good about themselves. Early season form had questions being asked about Jimmy Thelin’s future. After strong backing in the summer, that seemed fair enough given their run of form has stretched back most of 2025, much like Celtic’s, punctuated by that unexpected Scottish Cup Final triumph.

Seven of the last ten league matches have been won, with two draws and one defeat, 1-2 at home to Hibernian.

A terrible European campaign ended on Thursday with another defeat, 0-3 in Prague. They finished second bottom of the Europa Conference League with two points. 14 goals conceded in six ties. It has been a desperately poor season in Europe for Scottish clubs.

That defeat to Sparta saw Aberdeen set up in a mirror to Nancy’s 3-4-2-1. We’ve seen Heart of Midlothian and Dundee United match up Celtic man for man over the last two weeks. Gian Piero Gasparini’s AS Roma suffocated the Celts in the Europa League with an intense man-to-man full-court press – a top coach with a high-quality group of players was overwhelming for this Celtic group.

So, can we expect something similar?