Brendan Rodgers talks the plan for Aberdeen as Celtic gear up for ‘really exciting’ tussle

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Celtic will turn their focus to facing Aberdeen next Saturday after Brendan Rodgers’ men strucl late to defeat Sligo Rovers in a productive friendly encounter at the Showgrounds.

In a game where they had to recover from a 2-1 deficit, Luis Palma’s hat-trick for the Bhoys in Ireland capped an impressive evening where Luke McCowan and Hyunjun Yang also put their best foot forward.

While 12 Celtic players are on international duty, the remaining crop will already be conditioning themselves mentally and physically for tests that lie ahead, starting with their top-of-the-table clash at Celtic Park.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	CelticCeltic	7	7	0	0	22	1	21	21
2	AberdeenAberdeen	7	7	0	0	15	6	9	21
3	RangersRangers	7	5	1	1	12	4	8	16
4	MotherwellMotherwell	7	4	1	2	11	8	3	13

Aberdeen travel to face the Hoops level on points at the summit, so there is plenty to play for on matchday eight of the Scottish Premiership calendar.

With Celtic opting out of Premier Sports’ SPFL contract signifying that the game will remain in a traditional Saturday 3 pm slot, Brendan Rodgers has shared how his side are preparing for the tussle.

Brendan Rodgers on the Celtic plan for Aberdeen clash

Speaking post-match after the Bhoys victory over Sligo Rovers, Rodgers laid out how his side will gear up to take on the challenge of putting distance between themselves and Aberdeen next weekend.

He told Celtic TV via YouTube: “We’ve got a couple of free days’ I’ve obviously got the Foundation event down in London on Friday for the club, so I’m looking forward to that.

“A little bit of rest, but then, obviously planning ahead for that really exciting game. The first game back, so I’m looking forward to that and we will have a couple of days to recover now. It’s been a long period of games, seven games in 23 days.

“A little bit of recovery time and then we’ll look forward to get everyone back in preparing for the Aberdeen game.”

Celtic will be up for the task of seeing off Aberdeen

Rarely has there been such clamour for a Celtic vs Aberdeen fixture in the last couple of seasons, but that is a testament to the form of both clubs heading into this one.

However, the Bhoys are the ones defending their title belt on this occasion, so you would expect them to be merciless as another important three points lies on the line against Jimmy Thelin’s men.

The man in the dugout has been involved in countless clashes involving Celtic taking on sides who believe they can upset the apple cart in Glasgow; rarely do they manage to emerge victorious.

Nevertheless, complacency against a talented Aberdeen outfit isn’t an option. Once the players enjoy some free time, Rodgers will have them aware of exactly what they need to do against the Dons.