Philippe Clement insists that the season of the Rangers does not end before the surprise of Old Firm on Thursday, while Brendan Rodgers swears that Celtic “will not soften” despite its advantage of 14 points over the Scottish.
The newest episode of this adjustment, on Sky Sports, comes weeks after the two met in a debatable Cup Ultimate that Celtic won on penalties.
Clement insists the defeat at Hampden Park proves Rangers can beat the champions, with the Scottish FA refereeing leader later admitting they had been awarded a penalty in extra time when the score was 3-3.
However, if the Belgian wants to get a well -deserved victory in this match, he will have to do it with Captain James Tavernier, who has joined a growing list of injured, while goalkeeper Jack Butland will also be absent after being hospitalized after suffering a Internal hemorrhage in his leg.
“We deserved to win [the last match against Celtic], we had the best chances and some other circumstances also,” Clement told Sky Sports News.
“The team has shown it. It’s about coming back and taking the 3 points. “
When asked if some fans were right to think if the season was already over due to Celtic’s lead in the league, he added: “No, for sure [that is] not [the case].
“We will fight by adjustment and result. It is everyone’s duty and also what everyone wants.
“It is a new squad, with a new long-term project, with young players getting better. It is about having the hunger and desire to win every game. That is what this club is about and that will never change.”
Rangers come into the game having lost at St Mirren and then drawn with Motherwell, with Clement adding: “Everyone who watched the two games against Motherwell and St Mirren, we were the team that deserved to win those games with as many chances as we had.
“We need to be more clinical and efficient and the luck needs to drop more than we had in those games.”
The champions meanwhile are unbeaten in their last 27 league games but Rodgers insists they are taking nothing for granted against a Gers side who are coming under fire from their own supporters.
“Listen to, we will assume the pressure,” said the Norwegian. “We strive in each and every one of the games to win and win well. So there is no adjustment in this aspect.
“We are humble to prepare for the games. People look at the gap, but that is not even taken into account. We can’t melt, let’s not melt. “
“We are betting for the next game because we know how much this game for people.
“I went there last season, in the first game, under tension and everything. Now I go there with 14 points. . . but there is no replacement for us, the mentality is to pass out and perform and check to play our game.
“This tension will be there and, above all, a game in Ibrox without followers. “
After having grown up in a circle of relatives supported through the Celtics in the Antim country, Rodgers knows how much the adjustment for the followers means, regardless of the context of the painting of the League.
“I understand the game, I understand it as a fan, and I understood it from the first game I played as a coach in September 2016,” he said. “I enjoyed both one and both. The breakthroughs The results of this are great.
“There is tension in a way. I hear about a ‘dead rubber’. There is never a match between Rangers and Celtic that is dead rubber, at least in my opinion.
“You need to win every game and every game and you need to play at the highest level. For me, I love the occasion, I love the game, it is an iconic game and one that I need to win. “
Rodgers has won them, 16 in total, and suffered only one defeat in 20 derbies. Thursday’s win would mean he has enjoyed a career-high 17 wins against Aberdeen and The Light Blues, more than any other club.
Watch the old company surprise on Sky Sports Football and the main event from 2pm. Thursday, Jan. 2, kick at 3 p. m.