O'Neill combats injuries and fatigue in search of trophy

The League Cup in England made Martin O'Neill's name, but the Scottish version is making a rod for his back. No one can wish they had not reached a cup final, but Celtic must be having second thoughts.

Any game against Rangers guarantees commitment, not least one in which the first trophy of the season is at stake. However, the 57th Scottish League Cup final at Hampden Park tomorrow is a distraction Celtic simply do not need in the middle of a Uefa Cup quarter-final with Liverpool.

O'Neill refuses to talk down the CIS Cup final – as its current sponsors have re-branded it – because he believes that downgrading competitions, as Manchester United did, is "not the way to live your life". He also has a special place in his heart for the Coca-Cola Cup, which brought him his first managerial success at Leicester City in 1997.

However, the inescapable fact is that his players are already feeling the effects of the last seven days. The effort given in beating Rangers last Saturday in the Scottish Premier League impacted on the performance against Liverpool. As he mulls over how to engineer a success at Anfield to secure a place in the last four of the Uefa Cup, the penalty clause of tomorrow's second helping of Old Firm action would be more injuries to hinder his plans.

Alan Thompson is already out, having limped from the fray at Parkhead on Thursday with a gash left in his leg from a Steven Gerrard challenge, joining his colleague on the opposite wing, Didier Agathe, who tore his hamstring against Rangers. Chris Sutton's groin problem makes him very doubtful.

"The effort we have put into these games has been considerable," O'Neill said yesterday. "It has been tough on the players. Normally, we should have been able to go away after last weekend's win over Rangers and have eight days to prepare, as you normally do for a final.

"We had to make do with a warm-down yesterday and we'll train on Saturday. Four huge games in such a short space of time is asking a lot of all the players. It can't be helped, this is why we are in Europe, but I will see how some of the lads are, and maybe we'll make changes. One thing's sure, Rangers will be pretty delighted."

They probably are. At Ibrox, the only bruises are to pride. Alex McLeish admits that Rangers have enjoyed the low profile offered by the proximity of the Battle of Britain, which has allowed his players to lick their wounds after the 1-0 defeat at Parkhead in the league.

"We can't afford to be as fickle as the media," the Rangers manager said. "We had to cut through the hysteria surrounding that defeat and lift the players. But they need to have a strong mentality. At a club like this, the expectation levels are so high that everything goes under the microscope."

Unlike O'Neill, McLeish has no absentees. Indeed, Ronald de Boer, who missed the game at Parkhead, returns to action, eager to keep the holders' grip on the trophy, though aware that Celtic possess an unknown quantity after their Uefa Cup exertions. "When I was at Ajax and we won the Champions' League in 1995, we were so desperate to play in the domestic games because we didn't want to drop out of the team," the Dutch international said. "If you are strong mentally, you can push yourself physically. Celtic will also be wanting to get a result before they go to Liverpool."

O'Neill insisted Anfield will not even enter his head until Monday morning. "You saw how big a lift Liverpool got from winning the Worthington Cup and it would do the same to us. The tie is not over yet and I think we can score at Anfield."