In a bold and candid assessment ahead of their Premier Sports Cup quarter-final clash with Celtic, Falkirk manager John McGlynn acknowledged the daunting challenge facing his side on Sunday afternoon.

With his team, who top the Scottish Championship on maximum points from their opening five league fixtures - which is identical to Celtic in the top-flight, listed as 30/1 underdogs in what he humorously termed a "two-horse race," McGlynn's comments reflect the expectancy of the outcome that lies ahead at Parkhead. 

“Looking at the betting this morning, it would suggest there’s no point in us turning up – we’re 30/1 in a two-horse race,” McGlynn laughed. “I’ve not come across that very often.

“We’ll need to be defensively good, we’ll need an enormous amount of luck, every player will need to be at their best, and then we might have a chance.

"Our guys have been playing very well, they’ve got confidence and momentum, we’ve beaten two Premiership teams (Dundee United and Hearts) and from that aspect I’m sure Celtic won’t treat us too lightly.”

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McGlynn, who has previously managed Heart of Midlothian, Livingston and Raith Rovers, has been linked with the vacant job at St Johnstone. 

Asked about the prospect of him replacing Craig Levein in the McDiarmid Park hot seat, the 62-year-old said: “It’s a compliment for all the good work that’s been getting done.

"It’s not only here at Falkirk, I think myself and (assistant) Paul Smith did a really good job at Raith Rovers to get them out of League One and then finish third in our first season in the Championship, in a league that contained Hearts and Dundee, and then fifth in our last season.

“And we’ve come in here and within two and a bit seasons, we are where we are now, which everyone can see. It’s nice to be linked with it but I’m very comfortable and very happy where I am.

“The best way would be to do it with Falkirk. If we can, I think that would be more rewarding. That would be an awesome achievement.

“Falkirk historically would be one of the top 12 teams in Scotland, I would suggest, in terms of attendances, history, all that type of thing, but they found themselves in League One for five years.

"It’s looking like we’re on our way up now, but the aim is to try and get to the Premiership with Falkirk if we can.”