Sun Apr 20 13:40:00 UTC 2025: ## Celtic Favourites to Overcome Relegation-Threatened St Johnstone in Scottish FA Cup Semi-Final

**Glasgow –** Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic face St Johnstone in the Scottish FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, aiming for a third consecutive cup victory and a domestic treble. While Celtic are heavy favourites, St Johnstone, battling relegation in the Premiership, will be buoyed by their recent 1-0 win over the Bhoys.

Celtic, under manager Brendan Rodgers, have already secured the Scottish League Cup and hold a commanding lead in the Premiership. However, they enter the match after a slight dip in form, including that surprising defeat to St Johnstone. Despite this recent setback, Celtic’s overall dominance in their head-to-head record against St Johnstone (28 wins, 4 draws in their last 32 meetings) makes them strong contenders.

St Johnstone, meanwhile, have enjoyed a relatively successful FA Cup run despite their struggles in the league, overcoming Motherwell, Hamilton Academical, and Livingston en route to the semi-final. However, they will be without several key players due to injury, including Bozo Mikulic, Drey Wright, Uche Ikpeazu, and Sam McClelland. Zach Mitchell is also a doubt.

Manager Simo Valakari may field a similar team to the one that defeated Celtic recently, potentially bringing in Taylor Steven and Barry Douglas to the backline. Celtic, on the other hand, will likely continue without injured goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and Hyun-Jun Yang, with Viljami Sinisalo and a front three of Nicolas-Gerrit Kuhn, Jota, and Daizen Maeda expected to start. Jeffrey Schlupp might replace Greg Taylor in the defence.

Despite St Johnstone’s recent victory and Celtic’s recent blip, the pre-match analysis heavily favours a Celtic victory and progression to the final. For a detailed data analysis of potential outcomes, click here.

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