Hull City head coach Sergej Jakirovic has revealed that Scotland striker Oli McBurnie was coughing up blood at half-time during Sunday's 1-1 draw with Brentford. The medical scare comes as transfer plans take shape elsewhere, with Celtic determined to keep Cameron Carter-Vickers. The Scottish Premiership leaders have no intention of losing the 28-year-old United States centre-back and will reject any outside interest during the January window.
Injury issues are creating significant selection concerns across the division, with Heart of Midlothian bracing for further setbacks. Hearts are awaiting scan results for defensive pair Harry Milne and Christian Borchgrevink, while also potentially having to wait an additional month for midfielder Oisin McEntee to make his return. Meanwhile, St Johnstone could be without midfielder Sam Stanton for a month of Scottish Premiership matches because of an ankle injury, and Dundee centre-half Owen Bevan is rated as a doubt for Wednesday's encounter with Kilmarnock.
At Celtic, goalkeeper Sam Johnstone has explained that he feels better prepared to handle the demands of playing for the club following a difficult debut in a 3-0 Premier Sports Cup quarter-final loss to Rangers. Looking back to 2012, Celtic-supporting former winger David Templeton revealed that then-manager Neil Lennon attempted to persuade him to reject an offer from Rangers. However, Hearts informed Templeton he would not play for the club again if he turned down the six-figure transfer and instead waited to run down his contract to join their Glasgow rivals. Officiating has also come into focus, with Dundee United contacting the Scottish FA to request an explanation after Zac Sapsford had a goal ruled out in contentious fashion during Saturday's 3-2 victory over Aberdeen.
Abroad, former Scottish Premiership managers have experienced unusual challenges with their current teams. Former Rangers boss Michael Beale personally refunded Zulte Waregem fans their ticket costs after his team suffered a fourth consecutive defeat. Elsewhere, former Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou revealed that he had to evacuate his squad to a secret location as a result of riots in Toulouse prior to their Ligue 1 draw with Troyes.