Canning wants Hamilton to be on front foot against Celtic

Martin Canning says Hamilton must travel to Celtic Park on Saturday with unshakeable belief or they could be punished by the reigning Premiership champions.

Accies' 3-0 home defeat to Aberdeen on Wednesday night, which meant seven losses and a draw in their last eight matches in all competitions, left the struggling Lanarkshire outfit just two points above bottom side St Mirren and one above 11th-placed Dundee.

Celtic romped to a 4-0 home win over the Buddies on the same night to go one point clear of Kilmarnock at the top of the table with a game in hand and manager Canning fears Brendan Rodgers' men will take advantage if they sense any trepidation.

He said: "If you go there doubting yourself or lacking that little bit of confidence, good players sense that and they can really punish you.

"We have got to go there with the belief that we can get something from the game, everyone working hard, the concentration high and approaching that game no different to how we would normally approach those games and see if we can take something from it.

"It will be talking, encouraging, trying to make it bubbly.

"The belief that we can win the game seems to be there at the start of every match, and we start games well and then it is the belief when we concede that we need to work on.

"Obviously going to Celtic Park, if that happens, you have to continue to stay in the game, continue to believe.

"At 1-0 last night, if we don't make the silly mistake for the second goal, it only takes a set-piece, or Aberdeen maybe start to nervy in the last 20 minutes and make a couple of mistakes.

"But we keep letting teams get into a position where they almost go into easy street and it becomes even more difficult to get back into the game because you don't keep it competitive.

"And that's one thing you have to do at Celtic Park, you have to keep it competitive from minute one to minute 90.'

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