Aberdeen vs Celtic Prediction: Back the Dons to catch Champions cold

It’s round two of the new Scottish Premiership season, and the action continues in the Granite City, where Aberdeen host Celtic from 12:30 BST in a clash you can follow live on Sky Sports Football. The hosts hope to get off the mark, while the Hoops push for back-to-back wins.

Betfred’s Scottish football writer Frank Monkhouse enjoyed a midweek profit when advising two winners from two picks at Ibrox on Tuesday. He shoots for more at Pittodrie, and you can follow his Aberdeen vs Celtic Predictions only at Betfred Insights in his full match preview...

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Aberdeen fans will turn out in their numbers for their team’s 2025/26 Premiership home debut. There are high hopes in the Granite City for Jimmy Thelin and his men after Aberdeen beat Celtic in the final of the Scottish Cup last season to win the ancient trophy.

If they’re to live up to expectations, the Dons must perform better than they did at Tynecastle in the opener, where a confident Hearts brushed them aside under the guidance of manager Derek McInnes. Beating Celtic would provide the perfect response.

Following a slow summer at Celtic Park, the champions did what they do best when grinding out a win to secure three points. Brendan Rodgers’ team huffed and puffed to a 1-0 victory over St Mirren in Glasgow, with Luke McCowan netting the winner with 87 minutes on the clock.

It was a nervy first outing, and everyone inside the away dressing room on Sunday morning will know much better is required if they’re to make it two wins from two. An away win would see them keep pace with the early leaders, but Celtic know points don’t come easily when visiting Pittodrie.

Hearts vs Aberdeen TV

This is a Sky Sports Football match with kick-off set for 12:30 on Sunday lunchtime. Live Streaming will be available via Sky Go.

Sunday’s early afternoon kick-off promises to be a cracker, and armchair fans hope this renewal lives up to recent matches involving the Dons and the Bhoys. Thelin and Rodgers crossed paths six times last season, meeting four times in the Premiership and once in each of the cup competitions.

Aberdeen won the most recent, beating Celtic on penalties following a 1-1 draw in the Scottish Cup final. They also drew 2-2 at Parkhead last October, and you can chance the home win at an intriguing 6/1 with Betfred. Fancy a level finish? Those backing the draw will enjoy a useful 4/1

Celtic may have felt the sting of losing to Aberdeen on spotkicks to deny them a treble, but the form shows they dominated Sunday’s opponents in the Premiership and League Cup.

The Hoops beat Aberdeen 6-0 at Hampden late last year and ended the league campaign with three wins and a draw. It’s worth noting Celtic won 13-4 in those league meetings, including a 5-1 victory at this stadium in May. The away win is tight at 2/5 on the Betfred site and app.

Both teams to score

We follow the stats for our first bet on Sunday afternoon, picking both teams to score. That approach would’ve landed you a return in each of the previous three meetings, including last time out at Hampden.

Going back further, we see both scored in seven of ten, and that’s good enough to catch our eye. If Aberdeen start fast, as expected, this match could provide us with an early-season thriller. Let’s hope the teams do their part.

Need a little more convincing? Let’s focus on how Celtic have performed at this stadium in recent times. The champions have won four of their last five games at Pittodrie, drawing the spare.

We’ve had plenty of talking points in that period too, with the Dons and Hoops treating fans to no fewer than 14 goals, including a memorable 1-1 draw here when Celtic rescued a point with a late goal from Nicolas Kuhn.

Match Result - Draw

The second pick in Aberdeen is for the match to end in a draw on Sunday. Celtic have enjoyed some comfortable victories here over the years, but last weekend showed Rodgers’ squad are still some way off their best.

They looked sluggish and low on ideas for large parts of their win over St Mirren, and could’ve conceded at least one had the Saints made better decisions in the final third. Aberdeen won’t be as wasteful.

Thelin may have won the Scottish Cup last term, but his team attracted its fair share of criticism throughout the season. They were also well beaten by the Jambos in Edinburgh last weekend, meaning they require a big effort on Sunday.

Fans want to see just what their team is made of, and they play Celtic at the best time. While Rodgers is putting pressure on the board to draft in reinforcements, they are still a couple of good players and a couple of weeks away from top gear.

I’m picking the Dons to catch the champions cold, just as they did when battling to a four-goal draw in Glasgow early last season.

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Frank Monkhouse Scottish Football P/L

25/26 Season:

• Points Placed: 12
• Points Returned: 9.22
• P/L: -2.78

24/25 Season:

• Points Placed: 257
• Points Returned: 252.25
• P/L: -4.75

Frank Monkhouse covers Scottish Football for us here at Betfred Insights. You can check out all of his work along with that of the rest of our Football Betting Tips desk on our main Football page...