Celtic’s upcoming Glasgow derby against Rangers is going to be tasty.
Whatever is or isn’t on the line, these matches are always hotly contested and the passion inside Celtic Park is going to be as fierce and aggressive as ever.
On the one hand, Brendan Rodgers is closing in on the Premiership title, with the champions 16 points clear ahead of Rangers.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  CelticCeltic | 29 | 24 | 3 | 2 | 87 | 17 | 70 | 75 |
| 2 |  RangersRangers | 29 | 18 | 5 | 6 | 59 | 26 | 33 | 59 |
| 3 |  HibernianHibernian | 29 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 44 | 40 | 4 | 43 |
| 4 |  AberdeenAberdeen | 29 | 12 | 6 | 11 | 38 | 46 | -8 | 42 |
Then, you have the return of Barry Ferguson, yes, things are so bad at Ibrox that they have turned to their former player for some help.
Added to that, away fans will be allowed back in, so the Celtic support will make sure to remind those on the other side that it’s 119 trophies and counting – no other team in Scotland has more.
But Hartson feels, with Ferguson back on the other side, some respect needs to be put on Celtic’s name.
John Hartson sends Rangers a reminder about Celtic’s dominance
From Rodgers’ first spell to his return, once again, he is on for a Treble and it would be a surprise if it isn’t delivered this season given the position the team is in.
But Hartson wanted some ‘realism’ to all of this and wanted to explain Celtic’s utter dominance, not just now, but for over a decade.
As Ferguson gets warm in his Rangers manager seat and there is all this talk about them, Hartson wanted to give some much-needed ‘credit’ to what the Hoops have been doing for a very long time now, as he told Go Radio.
“Let us have a bit of realism here,” said Hartson. “The bottom line is that we are going to win the league, so Champions League football (for next season).
“For me, you have just put £50-60 million. You get out of the league phase. You go into the knockout stages. We go toe-to-toe with Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena and Celtic were unlucky not to take that. They were outstanding against the might of Bayern Munich.
“When you think going forward for Brendan Rodgers, he is saying that he wants to get back into the Champions League. He isn’t resting on his laurels and thinking, ‘oh, we win the Treble’. Those finances are there for Celtic to go again and buy more quality players.
“So, it doesn’t stop here. When people are talking about the Rangers manager coming in and things like this. They have their own house to take care of.
“In terms of Celtic, we are in a magnificent position. We are potentially going to win 12 titles in the last 13 years. 37 trophies in that time – I just think this team needs an awful lot of credit.”
Brendan Rodgers’ trophies as Celtic manager
Rodgers has more titles (3) than Rangers have wins against him over his two spells (2).
That’s how much fun he has had and the more successful he is, the more Rangers managers that pass by because he is bringing in the trophies like confetti.
| Brendan Rodgers’ trophy haul at Celtic |
| Scottish Premiership title x3 |
| Scottish League Cup x4 |
| Scottish Cup x3 |
The above list is only going to be added to in these coming months and years because the signs suggest one thing only.
From top to bottom, there isn’t much to complain about, as Celtic are also progressing in the Champions League.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
