Celtic are still sweating on Scott Brown after Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers revealed the extent of just how uncomfortable the Hoops captain was in the early stages of the win over Hibs at the weekend.
The 33-year-old was forced off just after the 20-minute mark after having missed the previous two games. And it looks doubtful that he will be back in time for Thursday’s Europa League clash against Leipzig in Germany.
“We are still waiting,” Rodgers told Celtic TV when asked if there was news on brown. “It was a problem just below his knee and at the top of his calf so we will just have to wait and see.
“He had an injury that was sore and painful for him and even then he didn’t want to come off but you see he was struggling with his mobility.
“It was a real sore one for him but we will just have to see what the scan reveals.”
Meanwhile, Rodgers is looking for Celtic to take their recent impressive performances against St Johnstone and Hibs into the game against the Bundesliga side.
"Can we take our domestic form into that level?,” he said. “We know we are playing against a really good opponent. We respect it's going to be a tough game, however we have come into much better form and confidence and it will be a real examination for us away from home in Europe. But we want to go in with the same quality and confidence."
Celtic winger James Forrest has risen to the fore in recent games with Rodgers applauding the industry and professionalism of the Scotland internationalist.
And the Celtic manager also explained that the friendship between Forrest and Australian midfielder Tom Rogic off the park is reflected in their understanding on it.
“He is a real joy to work with,” said Rodgers of Forrest. “It has been great watching him consistently perform and it all starts with his training. On a day to day basis he is out there every day working on his fitness and he is a wonderful professional.
“He really looks after his body. His availability for training puts him at a real high life and in good physical condition and so he can go out and perform. He has been very productive for us in the past few seasons and he started this season really well. He and Tom have a nice little relationship in the game. They get on well off the park and they also look out for one another on the field and you can see that.”
Celtic will train at Murrayfield later this week in preparation of Sunday’s Betfred League Cup semi-final against Hearts with Rodgers insisting that the Tynecastle team can expect a far different side to the one they beat on league duty earlier in the campaign.
"We'll train at Murrayfield this week, so we'll get a feel for that," said Rodgers. "It's obviously a big stadium and they tell me it's a lovely pitch.
"But you have got to go and own the pitch and impose your style. We know it will be a tough game against Hearts, they have started the season very well and been really consistent.
"But we'll be a totally different team to the one that played them in the league earlier this season."
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