Former Rangers captain Barry Ferguson is adamant Celtic will chase Rangers all the way in the title race with ‘fire in their bellies’.
And the 46-year-old rival pundit thinks three Celtic stars in particular will be spearheading the burning ambition to replace Rangers at the summit of the Scottish Premiership table as soon as possible.
The Hoops are seriously toiling and the frustration amongst fans is growing by the game. The 1-1 draw to Kilmarnock last weekend was absolutely no surprise at all and the team wholeheartedly did deserve to escape that game with three points.
The day after, Rangers took advantage of Celtic’s slip-up with a convincing win over St Johnstone and it leaves Brendan Rodgers staring up at Gers with a two-point gap between the arch-rivals.
The Northern Irishman firmly believes the title race’s conclusion will reach the final day of the season and stressed there are so many more games to be played.
But Celtic fans are riddled with anxiety because Rangers look likely to build up a commanding lead over the next few weeks as Celts struggle to reach an acceptable level of performance consistently.
However, Ferguson has strongly warned Rangers that Celtic will always be in their ‘rear-view mirror’ across the rest of the season and cannot, under no circumstances, write off the champions.
He has predicted an avalanche of criticism if Rangers take their feet off the gas and become complacent enough to let Celtic off the hook.
Meanwhile, Ferguson is convinced that senior figures in the Celtic first-team such as captain Callum McGregor, retiring goalkeeper Joe Hart and centre-back Cameron Carter-Vickers will be seething with ‘anger’ and won’t give up without a serious tussle for supremacy.
Barry Ferguson’s Celtic warning for Rangers
Barry Ferguson – writing in his weekly Daily Record column – also sent a three-word message to his old club. He said: “It was like a voice inside my own head that just wouldn’t shut up. ‘Don’t you even think about letting this slip now. You’ve worked too f****** hard to get into this position. Grab onto this thing so tight it makes your fingers bleed!’.
“I couldn’t switch it off. I had to keep sending out the same message, over and over. And it was all because, deep down, I knew the job wasn’t done yet, even though we were leading the league race from the front, with the finishing line coming into sight.
“That’s where Rangers got to on Sunday when they claimed their place at the top of the table. And that’s why they can’t afford to take the foot off the gas because, if they do, they could end up kicking themselves for the rest of their lives.
“I’ve got three words for them now that Celtic are in the rear view mirror – beware the backlash – because that’s exactly what’s coming. Don’t think for a second that Celtic will just wave you off over the horizon towards the title, wishing you all the best.
“You have to believe they’re coming after you with a fire in their belly. You have to know how badly they want to bring you down and take it all away. Look, I’ve not been privy to the conversations that have been going on inside Celtic’s training ground this week. But I’ll have a good guess.
“There will have been a lot of straight talking and a lot of angry men. Guys like Callum McGregor, Joe Hart and Cameron Carter-Vickers won’t take any of this lying down. And Rangers would be making a huge mistake if they expect anything other than a stinging Celtic response to being knocked off their perch.”
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