SlipsTips’ Bet Builder Tips: Cards and corners the play at Parkhead

SlipsTips shares a Bet Builder ahead of Celtic’s clash with Livingston in the Scottish Premiership on Saturday afternoon.

Celtic v Livingston (Saturday, 15:00)

Celtic will resume their Scottish Premiership title defence with a home game against Livingston on Saturday afternoon.

Brendan Rodgers' side will be looking to return to winning ways after being held to a 0-0 draw in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie with Kairat Almaty on Wednesday night.

As for Livingston, they picked up four points from their first two Scottish Premiership matches of the season before losing 2-0 at home to Hibernian in the Scottish League Cup last weekend.

Over 5 Celtic Corners

For what will be the first leg of a Bet Builder double, I’ll back Celtic to earn a minimum of six corners on Saturday afternoon. The Bhoys are well renowned for being a team that rack up high corner kick counts, and that has certainly been the case during the early weeks of the season. In fact, Celtic have earned a combined total of 18 corners across their opening two Scottish Premiership matches this season, hitting 12 at home to St Mirren before delivering six away at Aberdeen.

On top of that, Rodgers’ side hit a whopping 16 corners when hosting Falkirk in the Scottish League Cup last Friday night, not to mention they have since earned a massive 15 flag-kicks in Wednesday night’s aforementioned goalless draw with Kairat Almaty.

Opponents Livingston have long had a reputation as a tough nut to crack under David Martindale’s management. The Lions will look to defend deep and keep as compact as possible at Celtic Park on Saturday afternoon, and that should coincide with them conceding plenty of corners. Martindale’s men had to defend no fewer than nine corners when hosting Hibs in the Scottish League Cup last Sunday.

Over 1 Livingston Card

I’ll conclude the Bet Builder double by including two or more bookings for Livingston. Martindale’s sides always have a steeliness about them and they won't hesitate when it comes to resorting to the dark arts irrespective of the opposition. A case in point for that was Livingston averaging a league-high 2.61 yellow cards in last season’s Scottish Championship.

As for this season, the Lions have collected multiple cards in each of their opening two Scottish Premiership games of the campaign, including four yellows during their 3-1 win over Falkirk. It’s also worth noting that the visitors picked up four bookings in last week’s loss to Hibs in the Scottish League Cup.

Meanwhile, Celtic have drawn a minimum of two cards from three of their four opponents this season, and I would expect that trend to continue on Saturday against Martindale's battle-hardened warriors from West Lothian.

Recommended Bet

• Over 5 Celtic Corners
• Over 1 Livingston Card
• Bet Builder – 20/23 (Bet 365)

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