Celtic visit Hearts for the second time this week as the two sides face off in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.
Goals from Daizen Maeda, Kyogo Furuhashi and Sead Haksabanovic secured a 3-1 win for Celtic over Hearts in the Scottish Premiership on Wednesday night, with the victory maintaining Ange Postecoglou 's nine-point lead over Rangers at the top of the table. It was the perfect way for the Hoops to warm up ahead of their meeting on Saturday, with Celtic looking to win the Scottish Cup for the first time since 2020.
But, it won't be an easy task, with the Jambos having reached the final of the competition in three of the last four seasons. Celtic have won all three meetings against Robbie Neilson's side so far this season, making it seven wins on the bounce against Hearts for Postecoglou's side.
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So, can Celtic reach the Scottish Cup semi-finals on Saturday? We simulated the game to try and find out.
Hearts vs Celtic simulated
To complete this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the Celtic squad with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We predict that Celtic could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Starfelt, Taylor; McGregor, Mooy, Hatate; Abada, Kyogo, Jota.
We predict that the visitors could set up in a 3-5-2 formation, with their line-up as follows: Clark; Hill, Sibbick, Rowles; Atkinson, Devlin, Kiomourtzoglou, Grant, Haliday; Forrest, Kuol.
Celtic were dominant from minute one at Tynecastle Park, and after just 15 minutes, the Hoops found themselves 2-0 up and in a very promising position. Liel Abada dispossessed Toby Sibbick on the edge of his box and fired home to make it 1-0 after four minutes, and not long after, Kyogo made it two.
Another mistake at the back saw Hearts lose the ball on the edge of their own box, this time Jota winning the ball back before finding Kyogo in the box. A smart turn from the striker saw him pull away from his marker, and his drilled finish found the bottom corner to double Celtic's lead.
Abada got on the scoresheet again four minutes later as he volleyed Jota's cross into the net from close range, but just before the break, Hearts pulled a goal back through Sibbick, and the Hoops entered the break with a 3-1 lead. The late goal may have given the hosts a glimmer of hope, but Abada quickly extinguished any chance of a comeback as he notched his third of the game in the 53rd minute.
Abada ad Aaron Mooy worked the ball forward down the right before the latter chipped a ball over the defence for Abada to chase. The forward latched onto the pass before blasting a powerful strike into the roof of the net and putting Postecoglou's side in a comfortable position.
But, Celtic weren't done there, and in the final 10 minutes, the Hoops took advantage of their momentum to grab two more. Kyogo got his second of the game in the 84th minute when Sead Haksabanovic's dragged shot hit the heel of the striker and deflected into the net.
And to top off a fantastic afternoon, Abada grabbed his fourth in the 90th minute to confirm Celtic's spot in the next round of the cup. Matthew O'Riley played a pass into the path of Abada just inside the box, and after scooping the ball past one defender, the 21-year-old fired the ball underneath the 'keeper to make it 6-1.
FIFA 23 predicted score: Hearts 1-6 Celtic
Here are the full-time match stats.
FIFA 23 predicts that Celtic could book their spot in the Scottish Cup semi-finals in style, battering Hearts 6-1 in the simulation. Liel Abada grabbed four as the Hoops' attack had a field day against the Jambos' defence, with the right side a real weak spot for Hearts in-game.
What do you think the score will be between Celtic and Hearts on Saturday? Let us know in the comments!
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