Celtic’s Brendan Rodgers hopeful of Moussa Dembele return for 2017 Scottish Cup final

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has not ruled star striker Moussa Dembele out of the 2017 Scottish Cup final.

The Scottish Premiership champions, who sit 24 points clear at the summit of the top-flight, face current runners-up Aberdeen in the cup final on May 27 at Hampden Park.

However, forward Dembele is a doubt for that end of season showdown after suffering a hamstring injury during Sunday’s 2-0 semi-final victory over Old Firm rivals Rangers.

The 20-year-old, who is a France Under-21 international, has impressively scored 32 goals and provided nine assists in 49 appearances in all competitions for The Bhoys this term.

Some reports suggest the Frenchman will be ruled out for the rest of the 2016-17 campaign, but boss Rodgers is hopeful Dembele can play some part in next month’s cup final.

He said, via Sky Sports, “He will be out for the foreseeable future.

“He had his scan on his hamstring. We will monitor him and assess it over time and see how he reacts.

“There is a period of time with individuals with hamstrings which is never to say that he can’t be back within that.

“He was on a bike today and moving the hamstring so we will see.

“It is a hamstring tear, not overly serious, but we will assess it over the next two to three weeks.”