Celtic eye St Mirren in Scottish cup clash

Celtic make the short journey to Paisley on Saturday to take on St Mirren in their Scottish Cup quarter-final tie, just a week after the Parkhead side thrashed the Buddies in the league.

A second-half collapse by ten-men St Mirren saw them ship seven goals to the Old Firm giants with Japanese international Shunsuke Nakamura hitting a hat-trick in the match.

Now the Paisley side have a chance for revenge in the Scottish Cup as they host the Hoops at New St Mirren Park for the first time.

The Buddies are unbeaten at their new home and will want to restore some pride as they look to win the cup for the first time since 1987.

After struggling for form in 2009 Celtic added to their confidence-building win against St Mirren with a mid-week victory over Kilmarnock which sent the champions back to the top of the Scottish Premier League.

Defender Glenn Loovens says the thrashing of the Buddies has sparked a Celtic revival and the Dutchman hopes to get more time on the pitch as the club bids to win a domestic treble, with an Old Firm League Cup final next up after St Mirren.

“Scoring a lot of goals is what the team needed,” he said. “It’s good for the confidence as it’s always nice to get a good win, especially as we have a lot of games coming up.

“For me I just have to wait for the manager to put me in again and, as I said, there are a lot of games coming up and I hope I get another 90 minutes.

“We have a strong squad as it’s been important all season to change the team a lot and we really need every player now. We know that if a player gets injured or is suspended that we have enough depth to fill it.”

On Sunday, Scottish Cup holders Rangers could welcome back midfielder Pedro Mendes to the starting line-up for their quarter-final tie against Hamilton at Ibrox.

The Portuguese has been sidelined for the last two games with a thigh strain but scans revealed there was no tear in the muscle and he should partner Barry Ferguson in the centre of midfield.

The two sides clashed at New Douglas Park in the league last weekend with a goal from Ferguson enough to give the Gers victory.

Manager Walter Smith will settle for the same again this weekend after his side lost their grip at the top of the Premier League following their shock midweek defeat to Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

Lee McCulloch and Nacho Novo are expected to miss the game through injury although they could be fit for next weekend’s League Cup final at Hampden.

In Saturday’s other ties the Aberdeen management team of Jimmy Calderwood and Jimmy Nicholl return to their former club as the Dons take on first division Dunfermline.

Falkirk host Inverness with Terry Butcher’s side high in confidence following their win over Rangers, but both two sides are locked in a relegation battle and could view their tie as an unwanted distraction.

Fixtures (1500GMT unless otherwise stated)

Saturday

St Mirren v Celtic (1215GMT)

Dunfermline v Aberdeen

Inverness CT v Falkirk

Sunday

Rangers v Hamilton