Celtic boss Neil Lennon knows the teams Irish fans are irate over the clubs fixture card.

In the past Celtic had 6,000 Irish season ticket holders but now that number's been halved, but Irish fans are still willing to make huge sacrifices to support their team.

'There is no reason why the game couldn't have been played on Boxing Day, with the derby game moved back a day or two,' Lennon told the Evening Herald. 'On Christmas Eve you should be with your families, or, in our case, training and possibly having Christmas Day off, but to have a game at 1.30, I am disappointed with that and I can only sympathize with our Irish fans.'

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Meanwhile Celtic's match with Kilmarnock and Rangers' trip to Saint Mirren have been completely overshadowed by next week's looming derby.

A home win would cut Rangers' lead to just a single point, if both side's have the same result today, while an away win would provide the Ibrox team with a seven-point advantage.