Can Hibs Actually Do Something Here? Celtic Head to Easter Road on Sunday

Right. Let's talk about this one. Because on paper it looks straightforward. Celtic, one of the most attack-minded sides in the division, travelling to a Hibs team sitting fifth. You'd back the away side, close your laptop, move on with your weekend.

But hang on. Look at the fixtures. Look at the numbers. This is more interesting than people are giving it credit for.

Where Both Sides Are At

Celtic are third in the Scottish Premiership. They've scored 59 goals and let in 35. Fifty-nine goals. That is a lot of football happening at one end of the pitch. They are clearly a side that wants to play forward, press high, and make games ugly for defenders. If you are a centre-back facing this lot, Sunday is not your idea of a relaxing afternoon.

But here's the thing. Thirty-five goals conceded. That is not nothing. That is a back line that has been got at this season. More than once. And that matters when we're talking about what Hibs can do.

Because Hibs have scored 51 goals themselves this season. Fifth place, yes. But 51 goals is not a relegation-battle number. That is a team that genuinely fancies itself going forward. They've let in 37, so it's not like they've been a defensive fortress either. Both of these sides want to play. Both of these sides have been scored against regularly. You see where I'm going with this...

The Goals Are Coming. Trust Me on This.

Honestly, when I look at these two teams side by side, the first thing I think is: both teams to score. Every single time. Celtic give up goals. Hibs score goals. Hibs give up goals. Celtic definitely score goals. Someone in the office will probably pull up some spreadsheet about expected goals, which is a thing where you pretend football is maths, and I'll nod along politely. But even without all that, the eye test and the basic numbers are screaming the same thing here.

Fifty-nine goals for Celtic. Fifty-one for Hibs. Combined that is 110 goals scored between two sides in the same division this season. And both have been breached a combined 72 times at the other end. This match has goals written all over it.

Does the League Position Tell the Whole Story?

Celtic are third. Hibs are fifth. So Celtic have the edge in terms of where they sit, that much is clear. But fifth place with 51 goals is a specific kind of fifth place. This is not a team that has ground out draws and hung on. Hibs have been in games. They've played football. They've had the ball and done things with it.

The gap between third and fifth is real. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. Celtic at this level, with that goals tally, they are a serious outfit. But Hibs at Easter Road? On a Sunday afternoon with a crowd behind them? Don't write them off. Reckon a few people will be sleeping on this and then very much awake by full time.

What Hibs Need to Do

Look, this is simple in theory and brutal in practice. If Hibs sit back and try to absorb Celtic pressure, they will get picked apart. A team that has scored 59 times this season does not struggle when the other side parks the bus. They just find a way through eventually.

So Hibs have to be brave. They have to use those 51 goals worth of attacking intent and actually take the game to Celtic at moments. Hit them on the counter. Be aggressive in transition. Make Celtic defend, because Celtic have shown they can be got at. Thirty-five goals against is the proof of that.

It is a big ask. But it is not an impossible ask.

What Celtic Need to Do

Honestly? Just be Celtic. They've scored 59 goals for a reason. They have attacking quality, they press with purpose, and they create a lot. If they bring that same energy to Easter Road, they should have too much.

The danger for Celtic is complacency. Fifth place, home side, maybe a few players thinking this is a comfortable away day before the final stretch of the season. That kind of thinking is exactly how you end up on the wrong end of a 2-1 on a Sunday afternoon that absolutely nobody predicted. Celtic need to respect what Hibs have done in front of goal this season and not switch off.

The Saturday Special... Well, Sunday Special

I'm going big on this. BTTS is the anchor. Has to be. Celtic scoring is as close to a certainty as football allows. And with 51 goals in the Hibs locker this season, I am absolutely not ruling them out of finding the net here.

If you want to get a bit spicy, a correct score punt on something like 2-1 to Celtic or 2-2 has decent odds and fits the profile of this game perfectly. Both sides score, Celtic probably nick it, but Hibs make them work for every single minute of it.

You heard it here first. Don't @ me when it goes 1-0 Celtic and absolutely nothing else happens. That is the risk we take. Back to the drawing board if so. But I have a feeling about this one.

Final Thoughts

Hibernian versus Celtic on Sunday 3 May. Third versus fifth. Fifty-nine goals versus fifty-one goals. Two sides who have shown all season that they'd rather score than keep clean sheets.

Celtic are the favourites and deservedly so. Their record in front of goal is exceptional and they have the quality to hurt any side in this division. But Hibs are not here just to make up the numbers. Fifty-one goals says they mean business going forward, and Celtic's 35 conceded says there is something to aim at.

This is a proper game. Get yourself in front of it. Easter Road on a Sunday afternoon with both these attacks firing? Could be absolute scenes.