The mood music at Celtic has been overwhelmingly positive this campaign amid a brilliant start that put Brendan Rodgers in a position to steer his side towards success.
While the Bhoys retain a sizeable Scottish Premiership lead, they are also competitive on the continent and stand just one victory off Champions League progression.
Brendan Rodgers has set about improving on an initial double-winning campaign back in charge of Celtic. His mission has been extremely profitable so far, but this weekend’s Premier Sports Cup final is the real acid test for his group of players.
Many of his squad have been to the trenches and emerged victorious before. Still, there is also a new core of men yet to experience Celtic longevity following the Bhoys’ £30 million plus summer transfer spend.
Rangers stand between his side and cup glory, so how are the Celtic dressing room feeling ahead of tomorrow’s Hampden showpiece?
Brendan Rodgers previews Celtic cup final ‘challenge’
Speaking ahead of the tie, Rodgers outlined that his side are ‘very hungry’ to seize their opportunity at Hampden as they look to write the next chapter of club success.
He explained: “It’s a really special game, a Celtic vs Rangers final. Obviously, we had one a number of months back in the Scottish Cup final, so there’s always a great build-up to them and always a real excitement at the games. For us, it’s a special game, but it’s the next game and the next game that we want to win. So that is our mindset. going into it, we’ve enjoyed Hampden, we’ve enjoyed playing there.
“The pitch suits us; it’s a big pitch. So when you play through pressure at a press, then there’s lots of space for you to play, and that’s something that in my time there we’ve enjoyed, whether it’s been a semi-final or a final. So yeah, a final is a final, and it’s a competition that we obviously missed out on last year, so we’re very hungry to look to win this one.
“More excitement, more excitement. I know what this game means to people. We have a number of these games throughout the season so you never get tired of them or bored of them. They’re an incredible game to be involved in. It’s such an iconic fixture throughout the world. So to have the possibility to have maybe four, five, six of them in the season is absolutely amazing. They’re all challenges but I think this is what we’re built for. The tougher the challenge, that is what we really (look to capitalise on).”
Celtic hope Brendan Rodgers’ cup final record can shine through
Intriguingly, Rodgers has never lost a cup final as Celtic manager, which sets quite a high bar of expectation heading into tomorrow’s clash.
He has also only lost once against Rangers in 19 matches. Few have matched his ability to claim results on derby day, but nothing can be taken for granted.
Both sides have their own motivations for winning tomorrow, but Celtic need to take confidence from their excellent start to the season and use that as fuel to see victory over the line.
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