NICK WALSH will be in charge of Celtic’s must-win Premiership encounter against Rangers at Parkhead in Sunday’s noon kick-off.
The referee will be assisted by Frank Connor and Daniel McFarlane on the lines with John Beaton on VAR.
It will be the second Glasgow derby of the season for Walsh who was also the man in the middle when Martin O’Neill’s men beat the Ibrox club 3-1 in the Premier Sports League Cup semi-final at Hampden in November.
The Hoops go into the sixth and final confrontation against their city rivals knowing only a victory will be good enough, irrespective of how leaders Hearts fare against Motherwell at Fir Park the previous evening.
REF WATCH…Nick Walsh looks on as Callum Osmand hits the deck after a challenge from John Souttar in Celtic’s 3-1 League Cup semi-final victory at Hampden in November.
With only three league games to play, the champions are three points adrift of Derek McInnes’ side who overcame a one-goal half-time deficit to dump Danny Rohl’s team 2-1 at Tynecastle last night.
That loss, coupled with the 3-2 home reverse from Jens Berthel Askou’s side at the weekend, leaves Rohl’s club seven adrift of the top spot.
Walsh was also the match official in Celtic’s last league loss, the dismal 2-0 defeat against Dundee United at Tannadice on March 22.
Since that failure, the Hoops have racked up five successive victories. In the race for their fifth title in a row, O’Neill has guided the team to four wins in the league – Dundee (2-1), St Mirren (1-0), Falkirk (3-1) and Hibs (2-1) plus a 6-2 Scottish Cup semi-final extra-time romp over the Paisley club.
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