Kilmarnock vs Celtic: TV, live stream, team news, managers’ thoughts & highlights details for Scottish Premiership clash

Celtic head to Ayrshire on Sunday as they prepare to face Kilmarnock in league action, with Ange Postecoglou’s side aiming to close in on the title having moved 12 points clear at the top of the table.

The Hoops ran out 3-2 winners against fierce rivals Rangers at Parkhead last weekend to extend their lead at the Scottish Premiership summit and will be confident of racking up another emphatic scoreline at Rugby Park after securing a 5-0 victory on their previous visit.

A slight concern for Postecoglou will be the goals conceded in recent weeks having kept only one clean sheet in their last five league outings. However, it seems increasingly likely that Celtic will reach the 100-point milestone before the end of the campaign.

Hosts Kilmarnock currently occupy 10th spot and will be eyeing an upset to help bolster their top-flight survival bid. They sit three points ahead of bottom side Dundee United and have a one-point cushion over second-bottom Ross County. The Ayrshire club have claimed seven points from their last five matches, including an impressive comeback win over Hearts in their previous home match.

Here is everything you need to know about how to catch the action...

What TV channel is Kilmarnock vs Celtic on? Live stream and kick off time

Where: Rugby Park, Ayrshire

When: Sunday, April 16th – kick-off 12.00pm (UK time)

Odds: Kilmarnock 14/1 | Draw 11/2 | Celtic 1/6 (*Odds from Skybet.com correct at time of writing*)

How to watch on TV – Is there a live stream?

Yes, the Scottish Premiership clash will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Football and Main Event. Coverage begins at 11am - one hour before-kick. Sky customers can stream the match live via the SkyGo app, which is available to download from most mainstream app stores. Non-sky customers have the option to stream the match online via NowTV. The subscription service offers a variety of packages including a one off ‘day pass’ for £11.98 which gives customers full access to the channel for 24 hours.

BBC Radio Scotland will provide live coverage on on 92 - 95 FM and 810 MW. Sportscene will show highlights at 7.15pm and will be repeated again at 11.30pm on Sunday evening, while highlights will also pop up on Sky Sports News throughout the evening and following morning. Fans can also catch highlights on each of the clubs’ official YouTube channels.

Who are the match officials?

Referee David Dickinson will be the man in the middle for Saturday’s match. He will be assisted by linesman Craig Ferguson and John McCrossan, with Duncan Williams confirmed as the fourth official. Alan Muir takes charge of VAR duties, assisted by Gary Hilland.

What’s the latest team news?

Ange Postecoglou is hopeful of having several key players back in contention ‘within a week or so’, meaning Reo Hatate, Liel Abada, Anthony Ralston and James Forrest won’t be involved when the Hoops make the short trip down to Ayrshire.

The injured quartet missed last weekend’s Old Firm derby with Rangers but are not being rushed back with arguably bigger games on the horizon in the coming weeks, including a Scottish Cup semi-final. The Australian expects to have his crop back in action before then.

Postecoglou told Sky Sports: “There’s no real change from last week. All the boys who missed last week will miss out again. All of them are sort of working their way back to being involved in the next week or so but at the moment, it is pretty much the status quo.”

Kilmarnock striker Kyle Vassell is a fitness doubt, while Innes Cameron and Ben Chrisene remain on the sidelines. Winger Rory McKenzie serves the second of his two-match suspension after picking up a red card against Hearts earlier this month.

What have both managers’ said?

Ange Postecoglou:

Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has issued a strong defence of referee Kevin Clancy after the abuse he received following last week’s Old Firm derby. He believes it should serve as a reminder to re-think the way matches are examined, arguing that both sides made more mistakes than the SFA official on the day.

He stated: “It’s concerning for any person, mate. We shouldn’t even be talking about it. We all understand we work in a public space and with that comes scrutiny, but that should begin and end within the professions we work in, not go into our personal lives.

“And particularly with officials because, for the most part, we have clubs or supporter bases we should like to think would go into bat for us in situations like this. But the officials are kind of left out on their own. I think it’s a really timely reminder to all of us about the language we use and the reasonings we use behind things.

“I mean last week, if you look at it, was a real derby game and it had a bit of everything, but it wasn’t a great game. It was a game that was riddled by mistakes from both sides, a lot more than the officials did on the day. So why we need to separate that, from my perspective, if anyone analysed that game and think one moment decided that, then they are not really looking at the big picture.”

Derek McInnes:

Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes reckons his side must find a way of winning big games in their battle to avoid relegation, starting against the Hoops this weekend.

He said: “It’s important for us to get better and achieve better going forward, it’s not just to maintain our (top-flight) status this season because we won’t want to be in this situation again next season. We want to make sure our objectives are far higher than just staying in the league.

“But we need to deal with the here and now and that is about getting enough points. I believe we’ve got the players and the squad that can do exactly that. It’s alright saying it and believing it, we’ve got to go and do it.

“Our home form has been good and we recognise that’s going to be a real strength for us over the next wee while, but we also recognise we’re probably going t need to pull off a couple of big results and Sunday would be one that we could really hang onto if we can achieve that.”