CELTIC have maintained their nine-point lead since the SPFL Premiership came out of cold storage and will be looking to keep their winning run going when they head to Edinburgh for a tricky game against Hibs.
The champions claimed narrow wins over Aberdeen and Livingston upon their return from the World Cup break but were back to the ruthless best at the weekend in a 4-1 thrashing of St Johnstone that scuppered two bets for our man Mark.
That made it 11 league wins in a row for Ange Postecoglou's men but they now face a test of their title mettle with this trip to Easter Road followed by a New Year derby against Rangers at Ibrox.
If the Hoops can come through those matches with their nine-point lead intact then it's hard to see them slipping up in the second half of the Premiership season.
Hibernian have already taken points off Rangers in the capital this season but they've struggled for consistency with new manager Lee Johnson having to integrate so many new players.
Pressure was building on the Englishman after a horror run of eight defeats in nine games but Hibs returned to winning ways at the weekend with a 4-0 dismantling of Livingston.
Jason Holt's red card at 0-0 gave them a helping hand but scoring four times against Livi defence that's usually pretty solid will have boosted confidence in the ranks.
Johnson also has key players such as Kevin Nisbet, Kyle Magennis and Aiden McGeady back to fitness so Hibernian should be more consistent as they mount a bid for a European place.
How the bookies view it
Celtic's hot form makes them odds-on favourites for a win at a best 11/25 with Unibet. Hibernian are as big as 13/2 at Ladbrokes and even the draw pays a healthy 4/1 with Paddy Power.
Recent head to head
Celtic cruised to a 6-1 win at Parkhead when these sides faced off earlier in the season but drew a blank on their last visit to Easter Road in a 0-0 stalemate back in February.
Hibs have a good record at home to the Hoops in recent seasons, losing just one of the last nine league meetings in the capital.
Players to watch
Elie Youan didn't get on the scoresheet for Hibernian at the weekend but was a constant threat to Livingston down the left flank. With Celtic forced to play Reo Hatate as a stand-in right-back against St Johnstone, the Frenchman could get some joy here. Youan, who scored the consolation in that 6-1 loss at Parkhead, is 11/2 at SkyBet for anytime scorer but the assist might be a better bet once that market is priced up.
Kyogo Furuhashi has returned from the break in fine form, with three goals in his last two outings. The Japanese striker is just 10/11 with BetVictor for anytime scorer but the odds increase to 7/2 at SkyBet for him to break the deadlock.
Anything else catch the eye?
We saw seven goals when these teams locked horns earlier this season and this match promises more thrills. While Hibs have plenty of attacking threat, dodgy defending remains their downfall and 10-man Livingston would have scored at the weekend had David Marshall not saved two penalties in quick succession.
Over 2.5 goals is tiny at a best 4/7 with William Hill while BTTS isn't much better at 3/4 with Bet365. So I'm going for over 1.5 first-half goals, which pays 27/20 at Ladbrokes.
We saw 12 corners in both Easter Road meetings last season, with Celtic winning 8-4 then 9-3 on that count. That makes over 10.5 corners a good option at 11/10 with BoyleSport while Celtic -3 in the corner handicap looks great value at 21/20 with BetVictor.
This Scottish Premiership match between Hibernian and Celtic will be played on Dec 28, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Hibernian vs Celtic prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
