Celtic host Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership this weekend as they edge closer to lifting a fourth consecutive league title.
The hosts would have had the opportunity to seal the title with a win in this match, but defeat away to St Johnstone last Sunday made that mathematically impossible.
Despite the champagne temporarily being put back on ice, the Hoops can still end the weekend as champions, should their Glasgow rivals Rangers lose at Aberdeen on Sunday.
Victory this weekend would move the Bhoys 16 points clear of the Gers in the standings, as the league prepares to split in half before the final five games of the campaign.
Celtic's defeat at McDiarmid Park was only their fourth loss of the season in the league, but perhaps more alarmingly for the hosts, it was their third defeat in their last six Scottish Premiership games.
Brendan Rodgers noted a trend of his side conceding early goals in all four of their league defeats this season, which is something that his side will need to improve on going forward.
Having already sealed the Scottish League Cup back in December, the Celts have their eyes on further silverware before the season concludes.
With the league title imminent, the hosts could make it a treble by the end of the season, as the Hoops are into the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup, where they will face the team that beat them last weekend, St Johnstone.
For now, the focus is on ensuring that there are no further slips, at least not until the league title is officially sealed.
The hosts will be strong favourites for three points this weekend, as they normally are at Celtic Park, where they have only dropped points in two matches all season.
Celtic entertain a Kilmarnock side that have picked up just nine points on the road all season, and this fixture sees the team with the best home record in the league take on the side with the worst away record.
Kilmarnock are still only a point clear of a potential relegation playoff at the end of the campaign, so they will need to pick up points in their remaining matches in order to survive in the Scottish Premiership beyond this season.
After finishing 10th in 2022-23 in their first season back in the division, Kilmarnock managed to secure a fourth-placed finish in the 2023-24 campaign, even sealing a place in Europe.
The early-season qualifiers for both the Europa League and Conference League may well have taken a toll on the club, as they got off to a slow start in the league, only securing their first win of the season in their seventh game.
