Celtic: The “seriousness” of Kasper Schmeichel’s injuries surprises manager Martin O’Neill

Celtic, which ranks second in the Scottish Premier League and two points behind Heart of Midlothian, travels to face Dundee United on Sunday (12:30 GMT).

Right-back Alastair Johnstone is close to returning to fitness after missing most of the season with hamstring problems.

“He’s doing really well,” O’Neill said of the Canadian international.

“His national team wants him to go there for a week. We, at this moment, would probably prefer him to stay. I don’t think it will be a big problem as long as he is training somewhere.”

“We need some kind of rebound game or something to play here as soon as possible.

“This is big news if he can come back for part of the second round, that would be great.”

O’Neill also said that Arne Ingles is “doing really well” in his recovery and expressed similar sentiments towards captain Callum McGregor.

Ingles last played on February 11, while fellow midfielder McGregor has missed the past two matches.

“He’s fine, he’ll be fine and he’s recovered,” O’Neill said of McGregor.

“We’ll see how he does tomorrow. This was his first real day with the team, but he’s raring to go.”