ALLOA ATHLETIC are next up for Celtic as they look to wrestle back the Scottish Cup that St Johnstone claimed last term.
Despite being just one game into the domestic restart, a cup tie throws up the opportunity for some rotation as Ange Postecoglou tries to tread the fine line between getting previously-injured players back up to speed and bedding in the new arrivals.
Will Jota play from the start after returning from a hamstring problem against Hibs? Does rotation mean game-time for the likes of Stephen Welsh, Liam Scalea and Giorgos Giakoumakis? Is there room for new signing Matt O'Riley?
Our writers make their predictions...
Alison McConnell
Ange Postecoglou’s side have already claimed the first silverware of the season and will look now to get their hands on the Scottish Cup, albeit that the main prize is winning back the title.
The plastic surface at Alloa, the expected compactness of the game and how Wasps boss Barry Ferguson will set his side up may have a bearing on just who is given the nod to start on Saturday evening.
Just back after the break but with a hefty schedule ahead, it could be that Postecoglou goes for a fairly strong starting XI with players rested if Celtic get themselves into a comfortable position in the tie.
The hamstring injuries suffered this term may make him reluctant to give game-time to the likes of Jota for fear of irritating the injury just as he is edging back to match fitness.
Alison's team: Hart; Ralston, Carter-Vickers, Welsh; Taylor; McGregor, Hatate, Rogic; Forrest, Maeda, Johnston
Sean Martin
This isn't a dead-rubber like the Real Betis Europa League group game so I don't expect a wholesale ripping out of the first XI but I do think there will be some changes.
This could be one of the few times Scott Bain, fresh from signing a new deal, gets a chance to start a game while reinstating Anthony Ralston to right-back makes sense.
Giving Cameron Carter-Vickers a rest and Stephen Welsh game-time is a win-win situation and although Greg Taylor is not far removed from his own injury return it's an opportunity to grant Liam Scales a decent run-out too.
Callum McGregor should start every game but taking any chance to give a guy who has played upwards of 50 games a year for the past five years (and is already halfway to 60 this season) some respite, however short, is probably wise.
There are other options now anyway - Nir Bitton, Yosuke Ideguchi and James McCarthy can all play the 6 while Reo Hatate, Tom Rogic and new boy Matt O'Riley are all in the running for the advanced midfield roles.
Up front, starting personnel might very well depend on how Postecoglou views the artificial surface at Recreation Park. But, again, even having options to choose from is reason enough for enthusiasm - even if it makes predicting the line-up insanely difficult!
Sean's team: Bain; Ralston, Welsh, Starfelt, Scales; Bitton, Ideguchi, Rogic; Abada, Maeda, Johnston
Tony Haggerty
Celtic will prioritise the Scottish Premiership title this season above everything else. Having already bagged one trophy in the form of the League Cup, Ange Postecoglou's men have now acquired a taste for success and know what it takes to be winners at Hampden Park
The Glasgow men travel to Clackmannanshire to face Barry Ferguson's Alloa Athletic and the visitors will be the overwhelming favourites to see off the Wasps comfortably in this one.
However, Recreation Park is home to a surface that Celtic sides have struggled with in the past and the manager will not want to take anything for granted.
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I feel that he will rotate his side accordingly but still field a strong side to give the competition and the opposition the due respect they deserve.
That's why he might opt to play Scott Bain in goal and hand starts to some fringe players such as Stephen Welsh, James McCarthy, Mikey Johnston and Giorgos Giakoumakis.
Despite the fact that two of the recently-acquired Japanese trio hit the ground running, Postecoglou might opt to give the likes of Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate a well-earned rest and hope that his men can build up a comfortable lead with no real dramas.
Tony's team: Bain; Ralston, Welsh, Carter-Vickers, Taylor; McGregor, Ideguchi, McCarthy; Abada, Giakoumakis, Johnston
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