It is safe to say that Celtic have their fair share of injury problems at the moment. That has been one of the primary reasons why they have been so underwhelming over the course of the 25/26 campaign. With six league games to go, Martin O'Neill's side trail both Hearts and the Rangers.

Of course, it is easy to criticise the team. And there is plenty of reason for criticism. But at the same time, it would be unfair to overlook the sheer number of key players who have been missing through injury.

If even half of them had been able to remain fit, this season could have played out very differently for Celtic.

One such player who has spent the majority of this campaign out on the sidelines is the club's starting right-back, Alistair Johnston.

His injury woes started very early in the campaign, as he picked up an issue in the Champions League qualifier against Kairat Almaty. The Canadian would return a couple of months later against Sturm Graz in the Europa League but it was a mistake to put him straight back into the starting XI. He would reinjure himself in that very same game.

Recently, Johnston had returned to training and it was looking like he was closing in on a return. Celtic allowed him to join up with his Canadian teammates during the recent international break, although he was never going to play. But the right-back ended up suffering a setback while training with Canada, and that has now pushed things even further back.

Overall, Johnston has made just five appearances this season. And it might be time to start thinking about life beyond him as the starting right-back.

As Jack Dawson wrote: "Simply put, given Celtic’s suffer woes, they cannot afford to have a player like Johnston sat on the sidelines for almost an entire season.

"On top of this, given how long he was out for, there is no guarantee he will return to his previous heights, or even worse, he could pick up another injury.

"Therefore, Celtic should look to simply sell the full-back in the summer and try to get as much money as possible to reinvest in less injury-prone players."

Unfortunately, this is a situation that Celtic need to consider. Johnston has dealt with fitness issues in the past as well, and it is not like he has been unlucky just this one season.

Johnston is a very good player, without a doubt, and seems to understand what it means to be a Celtic full-back. That being said, availability is the best quality. And the Canadian international is proving to be far too injury-prone to be relied upon.

For a while, it had looked like Celtic had found themselves a long-term replacement in the form of Julian Araujo. But the Mexican international has picked up an injury as well and has returned to Bournemouth for his recovery. The Hoops have simply been far too unlucky this season and it is remarkable that they are still in the mix for a double.

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