Kilmarnock defender Lewis Mayo is relishing the challenge of taking on high-flying Celtic this weekend.
The Ayrshire club have only lost three times at home this calendar year and have already dealt Rangers a major blow with a 1-0 win last month.
But they are welcoming a Celtic side that have thrashed Aberdeen at Hampden Park to progress to the Premier Sports Cup final then shocked RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League over the past seven days. They also remain unbeaten on Scottish Premiership duties.
Mayo, 24, knows he and his Killie teammates will have to be alert for the full 90 minutes as he answered whether he'd prefer to go up against Celtic's Kyogo Furuhashi or Adam Idah on Sunday afternoon.
"They're both good players, both dangerous," he said. "They’ve both get different strengths, maybe they like to play different styles. It's going to be a tough test, whoever it is — that one thing is clear.
“I think when you prepare, you prepare for anything. You prepare for both of them. Even the wide players have got a lot of pace, and a lot of skill.
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“The way Celtic play, they're so expansive, you need to be focused all the time. They can counter on you quickly, as well as break you down.
“So, it's going to require a lot of concentration and a lot of organisation from our part.
"I think the preference after the game is that everyone keeps a clean sheet.
“You just need to be ready for both. Kyogo as well, he's so hard to mark because he goes and stands offside. He's clever that way. He'll go stand offside and then pop up, he'll play on the shoulder.
“Idah's got that as well. But no matter who it is, no matter what team it is in this league, you are playing against good players. You need that focus or they'll punish you.
“Celtic obviously have quick players. Even the European games we've played, you notice the amount of players on the team that have got that change of pace. The levels just go up a wee bit.
“It is marginal gains and it is those extra 1% levels. But it's good to test yourself against these players because it makes you better.
“And you're playing against quicker, sharper players. You need to think quicker to play against them."
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There's always the discussion about the plastic pitch at Rugby Park, with Kilmarnock shelving plans to move to grass until start of the 2026-27 campaign.
On the surface benefiting Killie, Mayo said: “If players come here and it's in their heads, then maybe it is an advantage to us.
“But if you want to be objective and look at it, we've had good performances on it and bad performances on it against these sort of teams.
“So, in that sense, it disqualifies any argument that the pitch kills a game of football, does this or does that.
“I think at the end of the day, it comes down to the players on the pitch and how they perform."
Mayo has tried to develop more leadership responsibilities in the absence of fellow centre-back Stuart Findlay, who is sidelined beyond the New Year.
The Rangers youth graduate has played 17 times this season and feels he's constantly striving to improve multiple aspects of his game.
“I think for any young player trying to mature, there's no sense in hiding," he explained.
“No matter where you play in the back line, you need to be vocal, you need to demand from people around you.
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“Your job is really to make everyone else's job easier. And if everyone does that, then we pull together.
“It's one thing you get taught, you can never do enough of it. But matter how good you are at it, you always need to try and give more.
“It's between the goalie, back line and boys in front, you need to try and make everyone's job easier for them.
“When you're an academy boy going up to the first team, you watch games and you think you see what's going on. Then you go and step on the pitch and it's about three times faster than you think it is.
“Even though you see things from the side on the pitch, it's those half seconds that make all the difference. The only way to get better is to go and test yourself."
