Livingston

Livingston are hanging onto life in the Scottish Premiership by a thread.

Should David Martindale make changes to the side that will face Aberdeen as they try to make up some of the 10 points that separate them from 11th-placed Ross County?

Tell us your preferred starting XI here.

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Goalkeeper Michael McGovern has returned to Hearts after a short loan spell at Livingston.

The 39-year-old former Norwich keeper signed when Livi were hit with injuries to Shamal George and Jack Hamilton in January.

McGovern made five appearances for David Martindale's side and although initially joined on loan until the end of the season returns to his parent club.

“Michael came in at a time when we were really struggling with no available first-team goalkeepers due to injuries picked up by both Shamal and Jack,” Livi manager Martindale said.

“With both keepers now back to full fitness and available for selection again, Michael has returned to Hearts for the remainder of the season.

“I want to thank Michael for his time at Livingston and his professionalism whilst here. Seeing him working on a daily basis to the standards he sets made it very evident as to why he has had such a prolonged career at the top level.”

Manager David Martindale says Livingston need substantial investment in order to compete with clubs in the top six of the Scottish Premiership again and revealed there will be a "massive reset" in the summer due to "external" factors even if they avoid relegation. (The Herald), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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Livingston have had a good record against Celtic in recent years and I had a sneaking suspicion we may just get something out of Sunday's game.

We played well against them in the recent Scottish Cup game at Celtic Park and they don’t like the artificial grass, so this could have been a quirky result.

Unfortunately, this went to form and Celtic turned up. We played well enough defensively, restricting them for the first half, but they were just too good for us.

They played with a tempo we struggled with even with four centre-backs making up a makeshift defence.

The first goal was unlucky but you could see it was coming. Shamal George made a few good saves, although he won’t want to see the third again. That was one he would normally save.

We just weren’t at the races for this game sadly and we edged ever closer to the relegation trap door. In fact, the half-time chat was all about which players may stay and be up for the battle in the Championship.

One player I hope we can hold on to is Tete Yengi. He had absolutely no service but never stopped running and putting in a big effort. I can’t see us keeping him, although even Lyndon Dykes did a spell in the Championship before coming to us. We can only hope Yengi’s loving life in Livingston.

One player who looks certain to leave is James Penrice. He’s a local lad and it’s been a pleasure seeing his career develop with a loan spell and then coming back to establish himself at a Premiership player.

Good luck to him, he’s a great lad and deserves the opportunity to move on.

His story is just how it should be at Livi. Come to the club, improve and get a move to a bigger team, hopefully with a fee for us too.

It’s a model we’ll need to work even more next season to attract players to the club.

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Kevin Thomson isn't a betting man, but if he was, he admits his money would be on Livingston to drop out of the top flight this season. And as the campaign nears its close, he's not the only one.

Defeat to Celtic on Sunday leaves David Martindale's side still 10 points behind Ross County with just seven games remaining and the former Scotland international is struggling to see where the miracle will come from this campaign.

"I've got a lot of admiration for Davie and the job's he done. I feel for him, but you just wonder how many times they can continue to punch above their weight and be competitive," he added.

"I know he'll probably say the same, and he probably gets a wee bit frustrated talking about budgets and always being up against it and trying to recruit the right players, but he's consistently done that.

"I don't think anyone will ever take away how well a job he's done, but, the harsh reality is it does look like it might come to an end this season, which will be a shame.

"Hopefully they can bounce back if they do [go down], without already relegating them, but as the table suggests, it looks as though the inevitable is almost there.

"Even though I'm not a betting man, my money would be certainly on them to go down."

We asked for your thoughts after Livingston's defeat to Celtic.

Here's what you had to say:

Jennifer: If it hadn't been for the goalkeeper it would've been easy five or six in the second half. We didn't pose any threat at all.

Kev: On paper points for survival are there, though performances aren't. There are a few players who are not giving their all for the team.

Phillip: The Championship is inevitable now. I'm still confused as to why the board didn’t make a management change earlier than now. It seems that they have just accepted relegation as our fate. I’m very worried about the future of the club given the financial implications of relegation to a team already struggling financially in the Premiership.

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Stephen Kelly admits Livingston have "not been good enough" for the majority of the season, but says the team are "fully focused" on getting a win against Aberdeen in their next game.

Celtic were held by Livi until half time, but Jamie Brandon's own goal four minutes into the second half led to an ultimately comfortable 3-0 victory for Brendan Rodgers' side.

"We put a lot of effort into the first half, at the same time the amount of possession and attacks Celtic had, it felt like a matter of time before they got that goal," Kelly said.

"Ultimately we didn't cause much going the other way which would have taken a bit of pressure off us at the back.

"The message [from David Martindale at half time] was more of the same. They did have a lot of territory but we did limit their chances. Against players of that quality when they get that much time, it can only be a matter of time before it leads to a mistake or a bit of skill and ultimately that's what happened today.

"Everybody will be fully focused on the next match and trying to get a win. We know the majority of the season hasn't been good enough but we just need to take each game as it comes at the moment."

Is there any hope of survival for Livingston? David Martindale's men kept Celtic at bay in the first half but were totally overrun after conceding the opening goal shortly after the break.

Have your say here.

Substitutes Adam Idah, James Forrest and Daniel Kelly all came close to adding to Celtic's tally in the closing moments as their goal difference moves to one better than Rangers.

Serving a suspension in the stand, manager Brendan Rodgers will have seen his team play better but will be satisfied with the way they remained patient to break down opponents set up to defend en masse.

Cameron Carter-Vickers lasted the full game after his latest injury setback, although the centre-half had very little to do.

Hatate was much more conspicuous during his 63 minutes of action. His touch, composure and energy have been missed and he could be a key player over the run-in.

Livingston have only scored nine goals at home in 15 league games and at no stage threatened to add to that meagre total.

Yes, Tete Yengi put himself about but the lone centre forward did not get a sniff of a chance in the penalty box.

Manager David Martindale set up with four central defenders and five midfielders grafting hard to subdue Celtic, but the plan went up in smoke the moment the unlucky Brandon knocked the ball into his own net.

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Livingston manager David Martindale tells BBC Scotland: "I think we could have posed a wee bit more of an attacking threat in the first half, but in terms of chances created by Celtic, we limited them to very little.

"I made a couple of slight adjustments, nothing major. [The opening goal] comes down to an individual error. It bounces off Jamie Brandon and you find yourself 1-0 down.

"The game becomes a little bit stretched and they pick us off. I think Shamal [George] will be disappointed with the third goal. The first goal changes everything, the game becomes so much harder for us.

"It's been must-win since matchday one. We need points every game. There's two scenarios here - we're going to get relegated or we've got a possibility of staying up. Either way, my mindset doesn't change. I'm still going out to win games.

"I could not say one player's not trying. They wouldn't be in my changing room [if they weren't]. This is the worst stage of my career being involved at Livingston."

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Jack Hamilton, James Penrice and Scott Pittman have been nursing injuries at Livingston.

Cameron Carter-Vickers and Reo Hatate are in contention for Celtic but Yang Hyun-Jun has returned from international duty with a slight issue and Luis Palma misses out.

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Dan MacKay says Livingston are fully aware of the situation they find themselves in with eight games to go to preserve their Premiership status.

The West Lothian side are 10 points adrift at the bottom of the league after a turgid campaign, but the winger insists they can still be in the fight.

“We know the reality of the situation, we’ve known it for a few months," MacKay said. "We’ve got eight games left to give ourselves the best opportunity to stay up.

“It’s obviously going to be difficult. You see teams picking up results when you’re not and that makes the gap look a lot bigger. But mentally we’ve been good as a team this season, we’ve got a good bunch.

“Things haven’t worked this season for whatever reason but we’ve been there and thereabouts in most games whether we’ve won or not.

“We’ve got eight games to go, the past 30 games have gone now. We put that behind us, it’s a fresh start now. Hopefully we can pick up some points and you never know what can happen.”

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David Martindale has tipped James Penrice to succeed at Hearts, and believes he is capable of going to “another level” beyond the Tynecastle club.

The Livi left-back has penned a pre-contract deal at Hearts and will join Steven Naismith's side in the summer.

“I can’t wait to get James Penrice back ready and playing for Livingston,” the Livi manager said. “I have got absolutely no qualms whatsoever about playing him.

“I think it’s a fantastic move for the lad. I sat James down three years ago and said ‘come to me, we’ll make you better, we’ll progress your career’, so when I found out Hearts were interested, I was delighted for him.”

Martindale joked that Livi are becoming a “feeder club” for the Tynecastle side, following a successful move by Craig Halkett and Alan Forrest in 2019 and 2022 respectively.

The Livi boss believes Penrice will follow in their footsteps and succeed after a move from Livingston to Hearts.

“James is more than capable of stepping up and dealing with it, I think James has got another level in him [beyond Hearts], I really do,” said Martindale.

“Sometimes players can underestimate the size of the job at Tynecastle, when you put that shirt on in front of those fans, it’s a big place to play football.

“It takes big players. I think it took Alan a wee while to settle but I think the staff and the fans can now see why Alan went to Hearts originally, he’s been brilliant for them.

“Robbie Neilson took him in originally and I think Naisy (Steven Naismith) has been very good for him, he’s kicked on this season.

“Craig Halkett took to Hearts like a duck to water. He had a difficult start to life at Hearts but he’s had the captain’s band a few times.

“When I look at the players that have left Livingston to go to Hearts, it does nothing but bring a smile to my face. I genuinely mean that. I’m disappointed I’m losing someone of James’ ability but I’m absolutely delighted for him.”

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• Celtic’s Matt O’Riley is the only player in the Scottish Premiership to have scored 10+ goals (11) and provided 10+ assists (10) this season. O’Riley has been involved in four goals in his last three starts for Brendan Rodgers’ side (one goal, three assists).

• Celtic suffered a 2-0 defeat to Hearts in their last away match and could suffer back-to-back away defeats in the league for the first time this season and for the first time ever under manager Brendan Rodgers.

• Livingston have lost six of their last 10 home matches in the Scottish Premiership (W1 D3), which is as many defeats as they suffered across their previous 27 league games at the Tony Macaroni Stadium.

• Celtic have won each of their last seven matches against Livingston across all competitions, scoring 2+ goals in all seven victories – a total of 20 goals (2.9 per match), with Celtic conceding just four goals across this run.

• Livingston have won just one of their last 14 Scottish Premiership meetings with Celtic (D4 L9), a 1-0 victory in September 2021 thanks to a goal from Andrew Shinnie.

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Livingston manager David Martindale says he takes full ownership of the club's current plight, but insists everyone is doing their utmost to avoid relegation.

The West Lothian outfit are rooted to the bottom of the Scottish Premiership, 10 points behind Ross County in 11th with eight games remaining.

Martindale revealed he and the players regularly have meetings regarding their struggles, but that ultimately, "actions speak louder than words".

“We have had that conversation with the group on multiple occasions," he said. "The players have had that conversation as a group on multiple occasions. Everybody in this club cares. Players, staff, we have all done everything we can.

“We are not out of it yet. I understand how difficult it is and understand how big that hole is we are in. All those things we talk about we have done them. But actions speak louder than words.

“I can’t sit here and point the finger at the players. I can’t sit here and point the fingers at the staff. I have to take responsibility for that.”

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Livingston manager David Martindale has been talking to the media before his side's Scottish Premiership clash with Celtic on Sunday.

Here are the key points from his press conference:

• Says the job this season has been even more difficult than he envisaged, and says "until the club gets cleaned up in terms of its ownership", external investment won't be possible.

• Regular meetings are held with players about the predicament they are in, and says "everybody cares".

• When asked how they can beat Celtic, he says the simple answer is to score more goals than they do.

• Martindale is disappointed by the news that Crawford Allan will step down as the Scottish FA's head of referee operations, but he is not surprised.

• Also added he is pleased for James Penrice, who has signed a pre-contract deal to sign for Hearts in the summer.

Livingston host Celtic in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday, knowing they simply have to start winning games if they want to avoid relegation this season.

Who would you like to see start against the champions? Pick your Livi XI for the game here.