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Celtic interim manager Martin O'Neill hopes captain Callum Mc Gregor will return from injury next week. Mc Gregor, 32, missed last weekend's Scottish Cup win against Rangers and will also be on the sidelines for the Scottish Premiership visit of Motherwell on Saturday. Celtic are five points behind league leaders Hearts, who go to Kilmarnock on Saturday, with nine games of the season left. The former Scotland midfielder missed five weeks with an Achilles problem two years ago, but O'Neill says it is not a reoccurrence of that injury despite initially fearing it was. Key defender Kieran Tierney also missed the victory at Ibrox with a foot issue, but he will be involved this weekend. "Callum will miss the game but Kieran is in better shape and he'll be there, " O'Neill said. "It's a calf strain and we're hopeful, he's done very well in recovery, for him to be back next week. It's not related to a previous injury. " What's next in best title race in Europe? Visit our Celtic page for all the latest news, analysis and fan views Get Celtic news notifications in the BBC Sport app Despite Celtic progressing to the cup semi-finals on penalties, Mc Gregor's influence was missed as O'Neill's side registered just one shot in 120 minutes. Luke Mc Cowan started as the holding midfielder with Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren joining him in a midfield three at Ibrox, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Paulo Bernardo came off the bench. "He's been a great captain both in the dressing room and on the field but that's something we'll have to address, " O'Neill said about trying to replace Mc Gregor. "We'll have to try and find a few better attacking options. " Goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has trained this week having had a shoulder injection before the trip to Rangers, but O'Neill was unsure if the Dane would be back in the matchday squad. "Kasper is much much better. He trained today and didn't feel his shoulder. I'll have a look and see [if he'll be in the squad]. " O'Neill is also optimistic the Green Brigade will accept the terms presented to them and return to Celtic Park for the season run-in. Earlier this week, Celtic said they are awaiting a response from the Green Brigade regarding safety and security measures - as required by the police and Glasgow City Council's Safety Advisory Group - to allow the club "to advocate re-entry" of the banned fan group to Celtic Park. "It would be great if that was the case, " O'Neill said. "We're running out of home games now. "The sooner it could get sorted, it would be fantastic. The club going in the same direction, that's what we want to do. " Would Arsenal be 'ugliest title winners in history'? What stats say Tottenham players can either 'cry or fight' - Tudor Gaelic Warrior wins Cheltenham Gold Cup Oscar-nominated Frankenstein and more movies that made Guillermo del Toro Celebrated actor Jessie Buckley picks her Desert Island Discs A new spin on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice Behind the making of one of Hollywood's most quotable films 'Aberdeen savour the most perfect game ever played' How Mc Tominay became a Napoli icon after Man Utd exit Scotland men's internationals to be shown live on BBC Commonwealth Games: Why is it so special to be part of Team Scotland? From titles to tinpottery - rank Scotland's top 10 clubs Too good to go down? Ranking shock Premier League relegations Divisive, ruthless, brilliant - how Galthie helped France find their mojo Would Arsenal be 'ugliest title winners in history'? What stats say 'Iran's women are heroes - they want to be free' The numbers behind Borthwick's nightmare Six Nations Jason Tindall - the most misunderstood man in football? Players must believe in your methods - the mentality of winning a relegation battle How do Scots beat 'nemesis' Ireland for first time in 12 meetings? Why London Spirit spent £390, 000 on uncapped Sussex all-rounder Coles From best in league to bench - Foden's mysterious loss of form Why England will keep kicking regardless of what fans think Will Everton's formidable away form throw open title race? Meet Paralympics GB's 26th team member Winter Paralympics daily guide: Six golds to be decided on Saturday Tudor's tactics: Pinpointing how his choices have made things worse The Brits travelling in their thousands to 'Costa del Cheltenham' Copyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.