Celtic

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Celtic interim manager Martin O'Neill believes the most recent international break allowed his side to reset as they attempt to retain their Scottish Premiership title.

O'Neill's side lost 2-0 at Dundee United before the break, but have since won four league matches on the spin.

They trail leaders Hearts by three points with three matches to play, including hosting the Tynecastle outfit on the final day.

Hearts travel to Motherwell on Saturday (20:00 BST) before Celtic host rivals Rangers on Sunday (12:00 BST).

"The players have, since [losing at] Tannadice, had some time to reflect because of the international break," O'Neill said.

"We got back to Dundee, got the late winner, and it's gone from there. We've had moments where we've had to fight through things, but we've seen it through so far.

"But Sunday is a massive test for us."

Rangers have lost both their matches since the split and their title hopes have suffered as a result.

However, O'Neill anticipates a "big reaction" from Danny Rohl's side in the derby.

"It's an Old Firm game, so I think that regardless of what the result was before that, I think there will be a strong Rangers side," he said. "But there will be a big reaction as well.

"We've got to be ready for that, but the place will be rocking on Sunday. The crowd seems to be in unison with the club at the moment, which is good news.

"And the players feed on that as well, so it will be strong."

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

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Celtic interim manager Martin O'Neill has been talking to the media before his side's Scottish Premiership derby against Rangers on Sunday.

Here are the key points from his news conference:

• Influential forward Daizen Maeda is fit despite hobbling off after last weekend's win at Hibernian. O'Neill says: "He's trained a bit, he's got no reaction. He's going to be fine."

• O'Neill expects Sunday to "most likely" be his final Old Firm match in charge of the club, 26 years since his first.

• When asked what he will miss most about the fixture, O'Neill said: "The intensity, the atmosphere itself, both at Celtic Park and at Ibrox. It really is phenomenal. The atmosphere at Ibrox, particularly in the first game, where they scored two early on in the match, the place was really, really rocking, it compares to any atmosphere in Britain and probably in Europe and I think that could be echoed on Sunday."

• The Northern Irishman says he will definitely be watching Hearts play Motherwell on Saturday evening - a win for the Tynecastle outfit would take them six points clear at the top.

• After successive losses for Rangers - against Motherwell and Hearts - O'Neill refused to rule them out of the title race entirely and expects a "big reaction" from Danny Rohl's side. "It's an Old Firm game, so regardless of what the result was before that, there will be a strong Rangers side. But I think there will be a big reaction as well too. We've got to be ready for that."

• Celtic have won four straight league matches since March's defeat at Dundee United and O'Neill thinks the international break that followed that game helped his side reset. "We had some time to reflect and not to be blaming anything at all, we just blamed our own performance that particular day, especially the second half where we didn't really create things. It was just like a mindset or a reset, call it what you want. We had time to reflect on it because of the international break."

• O'Neill accepts this season is a different challenge given Celtic's domestic dominance in recent seasons and says the players have had to get used to the challenge from Hearts and Rangers. "It's not a position that the football club has found itself in, in recent years. Generally speaking, they've gone clear and there's been no opposition. There's been plenty of opposition this year, not just from Rangers, but obviously from Hearts. So it's a big, big change."

Danny Rohl says Rangers owe their supporters a derby win on Sunday but are not motivated by the chance to derail Celtic's title bid.

The third-place Ibrox side are set for another trophyless season after losing 2-1 at leaders Hearts on Monday night to languish seven points off the top with just three games remaining.

But they can still have a big say in the race as they visit rivals Celtic, who are three points behind Hearts.

"I think it's a special game for us," said head coach Rohl.

"The message to my players is we have a big responsibility in general for the last three games.

"I think nobody needs extra motivation to go into this game. We want to make our supporters and fans proud and that means we have to deliver.

"I think for this game you don't need motivation. For us it's about winning games and I think it's about more than just [trying to] stop someone else winning a title.

"For us it's about making our supporters proud and that means delivering a good result and hopefully three points."

Rohl has faced intense criticism from fans in the wake of back-to-back defeats that have all but ended Rangers' title bid.

The 37-year-old German, who has also been linked with a return to manage Wolfsburg in his homeland, is adamant he is staying at Ibrox and that he retains the owners' backing after talks this week.

On his conversations with the board, Rohl said: "Fully, fully committed. I feel it every day, the support.

"I feel the conversations we had. We spoke so much about what we want to change for the summer. I feel that I'm in the right place with the right people with a lot of motivation, positive energy to bring this club, not just to a one-hit wonder, back to to a consistent club who can win titles in a row.

"This is also important to understand. A one-hit wonder for us, it's nice, but what we are looking for is that you consistently play for the title. And this is my job, this is our job, and this is why I'm looking forward."

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Motherwell boss Jens Berthel Askou would be a "very good" choice to fill Celtic's managerial vacancy this summer, according to Robbie Neilson.

Dane Askou, 43, has transformed the Steelmen into a slick passing side this season and has the club on course for a fourth-place finish.

Former Hearts and Dundee United boss Neilson believes Celtic should move quickly in a bid to secure Askou, with the club facing a major squad rebuild.

"I think he's done a fantastic job and he'd be one of the main candidates," Neilson told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"There was talk of Kieran McKenna at Ipswich but they've just been promoted, he's not leaving the Premiership in England for Celtic.

"Robbie Keane [currently at Ferencvaros], maybe. Askou in my opinion would be a very good appointment and he knows the league now.

"The biggest problem Celtic have is what direction are they going in? At the moment they don't have a head coach for next season, they don't have a head of recruitment and they don't have players lined up.

"How are you going to play? How can you recruit players if you don't know what the manager wants to do?

"So I think they need to get something sorted very, very quickly to get plans moving forward. Askou would be a really good appointment."

Sunday marks Martin O'Neill's first Old Firm derby at Celtic Park since a 2-0 defeat to Rangers in February 2005.

He can ill afford anything other than victory this time as Celtic, with just three games left and a three-point deficit, pursue long-time leaders Hearts, who visit Motherwell on Saturday night.

Rangers travel across the city with their title hopes hanging by a thread after a damaging defeat at Tynecastle on Monday. Even if they can't take the crown themselves, the Ibrox side would revel in dealing a fatal blow to their fierce rivals' glory bid.

So there's plenty at stake as the Old Firm collide for the final time this season. In the three previous league meetings, Celtic had a different manager at the helm in each, while Russell Martin managed one derby for Rangers before being jettisoned.

Watch below for a recap of what has happened so far in this season's Premiership Old Firm showdowns.

The first meeting of the sides this season was dreadfully dull, with many suggesting it was one of the lowest-quality Old Firm games ever.

Home defender John Souttar did have the ball in the net in the first half - but it was ruled out for offside as then coaches Martin and Brendan Rodgers settled for a point.

In what was Wilfried Nancy's final game in charge of Celtic, Rangers drew level with Celtic in second place in the Premiership as Youssef Chermiti's second-half double and Mikey Moore's clincher gave Danny Rohl's side an incredible comeback win.

Nancy's men were 1-0 up at the interval through Yang Hyun-Jun's thumping finish but failed to make their dominance count as Rangers roared back, ending Nancy's eight-game tenure in 45 ruthless minutes.

In March at Ibrox it was Celtic's turn to mount a stirring comeback, rallying from two down to rescue a dramatic point thanks to Reo Hatate's injury-time equaliser.

Chermiti's first-half double - including a world-class overhead kick - put Rangers in the driving seat, only for O'Neill's men to hit back through Kieran Tierney and substitute Hatate.

The result left Hearts six points clear at the top - what will be the title race state of play when the dust settles on this weekend?

Henrik Larsson recovered from a poor Celtic debut - where his loose pass cost a goal in defeat at Hibs - to become a club legend.

In the new series of BBC Scotland's Icons of Football, Larsson recounts his memorable career, from humble beginnings in Sweden to seven era-defining seasons at Celtic and Champions League glory with Barcelona.

WATCH: Icons of Football: Henrik Larsson on BBC iPlayer.

West Bromwich Albion defender George Campbell is interested in the possibility of a summer switch to Celtic, although German clubs are keen on the United States international. (Football Insider), external

Celtic target Eric Martel is set to make a final decision' on his future "within the next two weeks" as the 24-year-old defensive midfielder winds down his contract at Bundesliga club Koln. (Inside Futbol), external

Winning the Scottish Premiership title would be "up there with the lot" for Celtic manager Martin O'Neill, says his former forward John Hartson. (Sun), external

Friday's Scottish gossip

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Former captain Scott Brown reckons Celtic still have the edge in the Scottish Premiership race since they host leaders Hearts on the final day.

The defending champions trail the Edinburgh side by three points and their goal difference is five inferior, with just three games remaining.

But Brown, who spent 14 years at Celtic Park between 2007 and 2021, said his old team have to believe they can make it a meaningful last-day shootout for the title.

"It's going to be very tight," the 40-year-old told Sky Sports. "Hearts have been the team that everyone thought eventually would die a death, if I'm honest.

"But Derek (McInnes) has done a fantastic job of maintaining their levels. They beat Rangers (on Monday) and, watching the first half, I thought, 'it could be two or three (to Rangers)', but he changed it.

"He's done a great job and nobody probably thought they would have been able to continue that.

"But I still think it's in the Celtic lads' hands because if they can go and beat Rangers at the weekend, they've got Motherwell away, then the last game is Hearts at home.

"I'm going along to that one so I'll either see Derek lifting a trophy – which I'll congratulate him on eventually – or it'll be a fantastic day for Celtic and all the fans. It'd be incredible scenes if they can go and get another trophy."

Martin O'Neill has had two spells in charge of Celtic this season, picking up the pieces following the departures of Brendan Rodgers in October and Wilfried Nancy in January.

"If he was to go and win the title, I think there'd be a statue getting built right outside the stadium for him because he's done some fantastic things," ex-Ayr United boss Brown said of the 74-year-old.

"Martin seems to have the players playing as well as they possibly can, pressing high up the park, getting after teams.

"If he was there the whole time (throughout the season), he would probably have just cruised through it.

"But he comes in, he helps out and he's a Celtic man, he wants to do the best for Celtic and that's why all the fans love him."

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Martin O'Neill expects "spooked" Rangers to provide a formidable challenge in Celtic's must-win Old Firm showdown on Sunday.

With just three games remaining Celtic trail leaders Hearts, who visit Motherwell on Saturday, by three points.

Rangers are all but out of the running after relinquishing a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1 at Tynecastle on Monday, leaving them seven points off the top.

"The mood is pretty buoyant for a start, that's the most important thing," manager O'Neill told Celtic TV. , external

"Big game, really big game at the weekend and we have to win. [Expecting] a very strong challenge, obviously.

"I think if we look back, they played exceptionally well in the first half against Hearts.

"They were in complete control of the game, got the goal in front, Hearts were obviously going to have a reaction.

"You can't be leading that league for that length of time and not have something and they did. It seemed as if it spooked Rangers a little bit."

O'Neill doesn't feel the need to issue a rallying call to the Celtic fans before this weekend's derby as they "know what to do".

"When it is all together, then there is this great feeling of unity," O'Neill added.

"Obviously the results are the most important thing, but the power of the fans is fantastic.

"I probably don't really need to give them a message. I think they know what to do."

Jack Herrall
BBC Sport Scotland

Ask any Celtic fan which goal is their favourite from the past 30 years and one strike will likely dominate the responses.

When Henrik Larsson brilliantly chipped the ball over Stefan Klos to put Celtic 4-1 up in August 2000, it was a seismic moment for both player and club.

The occasion was loaded with significance. It was Martin O'Neill's first Old Firm game in charge of Celtic and the 6-2 victory set the tone for an era of dominance.

The ease with which Larsson cut through the Rangers defence after a flick-on from Chris Sutton around the halfway line, before having the audacity to even attempt his dink, lives long in the memory of supporters.

No one had a better view of that goal than Sutton, who after nudging it into space for Larsson could marvel from just a few yards away as he created one of the most iconic moments in Celtic history.

Speaking to BBC Scotland for the new series of Icons of Football, with episode one focusing on Larsson, Sutton takes us step by step through the famous lob.

"My role when the ball was coming along was to always try and flick things on for Henrik, or in this case, I knew Henrik was in and around the halfway line somewhere," Sutton says.

"I chested it down into an area and he was sharp in his awareness of where it was gonna go.

"Then he starts to drive at the Rangers defence and a little nutmeg on Bert Konterman and then he's one-on-one with Stefan Klos.

"But this is what sets Henrik apart from everybody else I've played with. In that moment where he goes to finish, most normal strikers like myself wouldn't be thinking of scooping it over Klos in the Rangers goal because of the margin of error.

"The skill level was so incredible. I'd have probably tried to slide it past Klos, but Henrik had that arrogance, confidence, whatever you want to call it, impetuousness, to just in that moment nonchalantly scoop the ball over Klos.

"It was absolute genius from him, that's why he was the king."

Sutton never witnessed a better goal from a Celtic team-mate and is similarly bullish on just how important that strike was for the club and the momentum they were building under O'Neill.

The former striker adds: "I would say that's the best goal I've ever seen from a player at Celtic in all my time there because of the occasion, because of where I think that game is viewed even today.

"There are a fair few Celtic fans out there who would view that 6-2 game as the game which turned the tide really.

"Celtic have been really dominant of late, but I think that was a game where Celtic supporters felt that they had a foothold again and that goal pretty much epitomises that."

WATCH: Icons of Football: Henrik Larsson on BBC Scotland on Thursday, 7 May at 22:00 BST

• Celtic are without a win in six league meetings with Rangers (D3 L3), last going longer without a victory in the derby from September 1995 to November 1997 (10).

• Rangers have won their past two league visits to Celtic, as many as their previous 19 beforehand (W2 D4 L13). The Ibrox side last won three successive league trips to their Old Firm rivals in November 1992 under Walter Smith.

• Celtic have only won the final Old Firm derby of a Scottish Premiership season (including curtailed 2019-20 campaign) in one of the past seven campaigns (D2 L4), a 2-1 victory in 2023-24.

• Celtic have won their past four league games; their longest Premiership winning run this season is five matches, which came during Martin O'Neill's first spell in charge from October to December.

• Rangers have lost their past two league games, as many as their previous 39 beforehand (W21 D16 L2), but haven't lost three in a row since October 2000 under Dick Advocaat.

• After overseeing a 3-1 victory at Celtic Park in January, Danny Rohl could become only the second manager to win his first two away league games against Celtic in charge of Rangers, after Walter Smith (first three from 1991 to 1992).

• Daizen Maeda has scored three goals in Celtic's past two league games, as many as his previous 20 Premiership appearances beforehand. Maeda is looking to score in three successive appearances in the competition for the first time since March 2025 (run of five), while he has two goals in his past three league games against Rangers at Celtic Park.

• Youssef Chermiti has scored four in two league appearances against Celtic this season, the most by a Rangers player in a single league campaign since Mark Walters in 1988-89 (also four). No player has ever scored five against their Old Firm rivals in one league season.

Brentford, Celtic and Sunderland are interested in Soufiane El-Faouzi after the midfielder helped Schalke 04 win Bundesliga 2, with some suitors ready to pay more than £11m for the 23-year-old. (Sky Sports), external

Celtic are aware of Premier League interest in two key midfielders, with Nottingham Forest again keen on 22-year-old Arne Engels and Tottenham Hotspur planning a bid for 24-year-old Benjamin Nygren. (TeamTalk), external

Celtic have now scouted Scott McKenna four times as they continue to show interest in the 29-year-old Scotland centre-half who has helped Dinamo Zagreb win the Croatian league title. (Jutarnji), external

Celtic continue to scout Motherwell midfielder Elijah Just and had the 26-year-old New Zealand international watched in action against Falkirk on Saturday as they weigh up a summer bid. (Scottish Sun), external

Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou says European football would help attract better quality players to the club - and keep existing ones at Fir Park amid interest in attackers Tawanda Maswanhise and Elijah Just. (The Scotsman), external

Former Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama has revealed to Citizen TV in Kenya his ambition to return to the club in the future as a coach as the 34-year-old winds down his playing career. (The National), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Kheredine Idessane
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Much has been made of how refreshing it is that the final derby of the season between Glasgow's big two is not, in itself, a title-decider.

Unless, of course, the result at Celtic Park helps decide things in Hearts' favour.

No matter the slightly diminished status of Sunday's noon kick-off, it will still be the most important game of the four the Parkhead side has left to play.

More important than a final-day decider against Hearts? More important than the Scottish Cup final? The argument can certainly be made.

On the line for manager Martin O'Neill and his men this weekend is a potential double bonus: entry into next term's Champions League qualifiers and the elimination of arch-rivals Rangers from the same competition.

If Celtic win on Sunday, they're guaranteed to finish in the top two. Their chances of catching Hearts would be boosted and in one fell swoop they would also demote Rangers to third in the table.

There would be no vital top-tier European funding for the new American regime at Ibrox with which to bankroll their ongoing rebuild.

The nightmare scenario for Celtic fans and board alike, after the calamities of their own season, would have been to watch Rangers walk off with the Premiership - and with it the possibility of dropping directly into the league phase of the continent's premier club competition.

It is now exceptionally unlikely Rangers can catch both Celtic and Hearts from a seven-point deficit to the league leaders with just three games left.

Guaranteed second, at worst, isn't exactly the bar the defending champions had in mind at the start of the season but they can't be too choosy now.

Were Hearts to drop any points at Motherwell on Saturday evening, a first league derby win over Rangers since September 2024 takes on even greater significance.

O'Neill is keen, wherever possible, to wrest control of the title race away from Tynecastle before the top two meet a week on Saturday.

To do so, beating Rangers will be essential unless the men from Gorgie lose at Fir Park the night before.

Regardless of the result in Lanarkshire, putting Rangers officially out of the title race would go some way to restoring relations between the fanbase and those who run the club.

It would give Celtic not just a final push in the defence of their title but would also give them a route into the Champions League.

Given they couldn't get past Kairat Almaty a few months ago, no one at Parkhead is banking on that road.

However, with the chance to reduce the title chase to a two-horse race, the opportunity to send their arch-rivals back to the drawing board, and the potential to start properly breathing down the necks of long-time leaders Hearts while guaranteeing some sort of Champions League involvement, it could easily be argued none of Celtic's four remaining games is more important than their next one.

Jack Herrall
BBC Sport Scotland

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Every great team throughout history has had a few key partnerships that fans instantly recall and fawn over.

For many Celtic fans, the level to which manager Martin O'Neill and Henrik Larsson were on the same wavelength is just as crucial as the striker's link-up play with Chris Sutton on the park.

It wasn't always sunshine and rainbows, though, with the sole time Larsson was on the end of O'Neill's half-time rage still a bone he picks with his former gaffer when they meet up well over 20 years later.

"Do I remember? Absolutely, because it only happened once," O'Neill recalls when asked about giving the striker a telling off in the changing room.

"It was against Dundee United and Henrik was playing in the first half... unlike him, he was flicking the ball all over the place.

"I think he flicked two over the stand and they ended up down at Dens Park, he was awful in the first half.

"So I had a go, and I think the players actually were in one aspect, secretly delighted that Henrik is getting a little bit of stick.

"I remember it distinctly because he was brilliant in the second half, that was his response."

Johan Mjallby, who also features in the Larsson edition of Icons of Football, was sitting next to the striker in the dressing room at the break and remembers it very well, as it was a one-off.

He adds: "And isn't that the best way to just shut your manager's mouth off up? That's Henrik."

In 2018 O'Neill, Sutton, and Larsson were all working during the World Cup in various punditry capacities, and when they met up, there was one item on the agenda for the Swede.

"The three of us went for something to eat, and that was the topic of conversation for about half an hour," O'Neill says.

"Henrik still hadn't forgiven me for embarrassing him in front of the rest of the team, but it stood him in good stead, and he's fine."

WATCH: Icons of Football: Henrik Larsson on BBC Scotland on Thursday, 7 May at 22:00 BST

Celtic have put Marc Leonard firmly on their summer radar and will continue to monitor the 24-year-old midfielder in his final three games of the season on loan to title rivals Hearts from Birmingham City. (Daily Record), external

Celtic are keeping tabs on Falkirk striker Barney Stewart and have the 22-year-old on their radar as an option to bolster their attack this summer. (Football Insider), external

RB Leipzig are closely monitoring Arne Engels with a departure from Celtic planned this summer and with clubs from the Premier League, Serie A and La Liga also keen on the 22-year-old midfielder. (Florian Plettenberg on X), external

Highly-rated 15-year-old Celtic striker Zion Pullan has been called up for Spain for the first time. (The Herald), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Tino
Fan writer

There was plenty of reaction after Hearts' big win at Tynecastle on Monday, but from a Celtic point of view, the result was probably the least best outcome.

Whatever the result, Celtic stood to benefit in some way and we now simply have to crack on with where it all leaves us.

In an ideal world, a draw would have suited best, meaning both of our rivals dropped points. And even a Rangers win might have helped by keeping Hearts alongside us on 73 points.

But there's no point dwelling now on what may have been. And at this stage of the season, all Celtic can do – and all Celtic should do – is try our very best to truly control our own results.

And to their credit that's exactly what Celtic have done in recent weeks .

Five games, five wins. A run that's kept us firmly in the title race, and which has given us some much-needed momentum heading into the final stretch.

And now, everything comes down to this one defining final week of the league season.

And what a week it could be.

First up, it's Rangers at Celtic Park on Sunday coming. Then a midweek trip to Fir Park to face Motherwell. And finally, the league campaign closes at home to Hearts in what could be a dramatic final-day showdown.

And with a three-point gap at the top there's still a chance it could come down to goal difference, which would set up an intriguing scenario on the final day.

Needing to overturn a five-goal deficit over Hearts wouldn't be easy, but it wouldn't be impossible either.

However, I have a feeling it won't come down to that.

Hearts, for all their momentum, are not immune to a stumble.

Motherwell - who they face on Saturday - have already taken league points off them twice this season. And Falkirk, who they'll play in their penultimate game, knocked them out of the Scottish Cup (at Tynecastle) not so long ago.

Six points from their next two matches is no guarantee.

There's also a question of mentality. Some of the celebrations after their win over Rangers hinted at a belief that the job may already be done.

But after a 66-year wait for a title, you have to be careful of getting ahead of yourself - and that could prove dangerous. Complacency at this stage may be Hearts' biggest enemy.

From a Celtic perspective however, none of that matters just yet. Our focus can only be centred on Sunday.

Rangers arrive at Celtic Park with nothing to lose, and that makes them unpredictable.

They've often looked more dangerous when the pressure is off, and how many times have we witnessed that in recent years.

But, if we approach this one with anything less than full intensity, full focus, then the three points will be anything but a guarantee.

There are reasons for optimism though.

The five-game winning run has created real momentum, and there's a renewed sense of belief around the squad.

Contributions are coming from right across the team, with the likes of Kelechi Iheanacho, Daizen Maeda and Alistair Johnston all stepping up at just the right time.

Ultimately, this crazy season for Celtic now comes down to one week of fixtures.

Three games, nine points, and - somehow - everything still to play for.

Stay focused, lean on the experiences of recent title wins, and keep the momentum going.

And it might just be enough to get us over the line.

Tino can be found at The Celtic Exchange, external