‘We just want’ – Alistair Johnston shares how Celtic really feel about getting a Rangers guard of honour

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Celtic look likely to have been crowned champions by the time they face Rangers at Ibrox in May.

The post-split fixture announcement put Celtic’s game against Rangers second in the calendar, which means that although there is a slim chance of winning the league at Ibrox, the likelihood is that Brendan Rodgers’ side will get the point they need to be crowned champions at Tannadice the week before.

However, if it is the case that Celtic wrap up the Scottish Premiership against The Tangerines, the talk now is over whether or not Rangers will give the champions elect a guard of honour at the Ibrox Glasgow Derby.

And Hoops defender Alistair Johnston has shared how his Celtic teammates really feel about it.

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Alistair Johnston admits the Celtic dressing room are ‘not too bothered’ about Rangers tribute

Johnston told The Scottish Sun, “Would I expect it? I wouldn’t say I’d expect it.

“The situation is what it is. We’re not too bothered if someone gives us a guard of honour or not.

“We just want to be lifting a trophy on the final day of the league season — that’s our biggest focus.

“Whatever happens in between is up to the other teams. That’s another thing I’ve learned since I’ve been here, don’t fret about things that are out of your control.

“If you do, you’re going to lose a lot of sleep, and that can take you down some pretty deep and dark rabbit holes.

“For me, it’s just about controlling what we can control — and that’s something that’s very out of our control.”

Celtic are fully focused on ‘difficult’ trip to Dundee United, not Rangers

Whilst the derby against Rangers is typically the first fixture many connected to Celtic look for in the calendar, Johnston says that’s not the case with the trip to Tayside taking precedence.

Johnston continued, “Hopefully, we can take care of business up in Dundee first.

“Dundee United have had a great season, and their place isn’t easy to go. They have made it a really strong place since they came up.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	CelticCeltic	33	26	3	4	97	22	75	81
2	RangersRangers	33	20	6	7	68	35	33	66
3	HibernianHibernian	33	14	11	8	54	41	13	53
4	Dundee UtdDundee Utd	33	14	8	11	41	40	1	50
5	AberdeenAberdeen	33	14	8	11	45	49	-4	50

“We know it will be difficult, but you know when you’re that close to it, then it’s a little extra motivation for the guys and something we’re all very excited for.

“Hopefully, we can wrap the league up, then go to Ibrox and play really freely and enjoy that match.

“But we have massive matches before then.”

The Scottish Premiership table looks extremely good from a Celtic perspective. With a massive 15-point gap to Rangers with just 15 to play for, it is just a matter of time before the 4th title in a row is wrapped up.

And, in truth, Celtic fans know deep down anyway that the chances of Rangers and their fans agreeing to give the Hoops a guard of honour is pretty slim. After all, they have only just gotten over Odsonne Edouard’s goal in the 3-2 win back in 2019 that caused the Ibrox club to cut the away ticket allocation.