Celtic prepare to take on Dundee in a crucial away game and the Scottish FA made an official announcement which could be a matter of concern for the Bhoys.
As the international break is finally over, Celtic fans are already gearing up to see their favourite club get back to the pitch against Dundee on Sunday.
The Hoops currently sit third in the Scottish Premiership table, five points behind both Rangers and Hearts after their Glasgow rivals' recent victory against Dundee United.
Hearts are also scheduled to play before the Hoops and have a chance to even extend the lead while playing an extra game, of course.
The Hoops' last game before the break saw them get defeated by Dundee's cross-town rivals 2-0, which dented their title hopes.
The Hoops will be without some of their key players as Julian Araujo has joined the list of long-term absentees and Alistair Johnston saw his recovery process extended after picking up a niggle during his last training session with the Canadian national side during the international break.
On the contrary, Austin Trusty's confirmation of his fitness has been a relief for both the fans and Martin O'Neill amidst the tumultuous situation at the club.
Now, the Scottish FA has seemingly broken some ominous news as the referee for the game against Dundee was announced.
Steven McLean will referee Dundee vs Celtic on Sunday, with assistant referees Calum Spence and Douglas Ross joining him at Dens Park. Matthew MacDermid will be on VAR duty alongside assistant VAR Chris Graham.
Interestingly or rather unfortunately, the Hoops have lost four out of their last six games when McLean was the referee, two of these losses came against Rangers and the only win over that run came against Aberdeen.
Although these things definitely won't be on the minds of the players and the manager but the Hoops must approach the game cautiously, as now their remaining fixtures would somehow be knockout in nature, as the two clubs who are currently ahead of them are showing no signs of stopping.
Celtic have previously come back from these situations and went on to win the league on the final day, and O'Neill is certainly capable of putting in that belief within the players.
But for now, they cannot afford to look far into the future. As cliché as it sounds, they have to take it one game at a time and hope that results elsewhere end up going their way. Otherwise, the league title race is pretty much out of their control already, and they can be perfect from here on forward and still lose out.
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