Philippe Clement has responded to Brendan Rodgers’ comments about having “fun” next weekend when Celtic take on Rangers in the last league derby of the season.
Rodgers talked about the upcoming title race clash after the Bhoys comfortably beat Hearts 3-0 at Paradise on Saturday, stating he was looking forward to taking on the second-placed team.
Celtic will have a three-point advantage before kick-off after the Ibrox side were victorious against Kilmarnock at home earlier today.
In his post-match interview on Sky Sports [15:33], when asked about the derby and how much Rangers need to improve, Clement said: “It’s a totally different game. I heard yesterday that they are going to have fun, so we are going to have fun also.”
Directly after, former Celtic striker Chris Sutton shared his belief that Clement is getting a bit rattled as the chase for silverware heats up.
Sutton responds to Clement and Rodgers comments
The pundit told the broadcaster when asked about potential mind games at play: “I think Brendan has got under his skin there. When he first came in, he was always calm, and composed, but I think he is feeling the pressure.
“I don’t know why Brendan said it, it would have been tongue-in-cheek. It’s better to do your talking at the end of the season.”
By full-time next Saturday we’ll have a much better idea about who is cut out to be champions and who isn’t.
The core of this Celtic squad have come through as winners repeatedly over the years, so the Bhoys are understandably favourites, especially with home advantage.
Nothing can be taken for granted though and I suspect Celtic will know exactly how tough a test next week will be.
These derbies are notoriously unpredictable and it will take a top Bhoys performance to get the job done. Don’t let a few Rodgers quips in the media let you think he isn’t as aware of that as anyone.