Aberdeen handed boost for Celtic Scottish Cup Semi Final

Aberdeen hope to have Slobodan Rubezic back for their Scottish Cup Semi Final against Celtic. The Scottish Champions will look to retain their trophy but first must beat the manager-less Pittodrie side, who are yet to appoint a permanent boss since Neil Warnock left in early March.

According to Record Sport, the Dons will look to welcome back the Montenegro Internationalist central defender, who has been injured for the last two months with a knee injury.

First Team coach and interim manager Peter Leven, who led his side to an unlikely draw against Celtic in February, said that they are hoping to have him to face Brendan Rodgers’ side.

“Rubi is about a week away from full training, full integration. He is in and out a little bit now.

“The semi-final is the target for Rubi. I think Dundee might be a little bit too close. He has trained well and the physios and staff have worked really hard with him.

“Rubi is a good professional as he does extra in the gym and things like that. He is looking really, really good.

“Rubi is dying to play in the semi-final. His attitude has been brilliant. He has been in the gym constantly and he is in a good place.”

Rubezic has made 29 appearances in all competitions for the Dons since arriving from Serbian side Novi Pazar last summer. However, in the meeting between the sides at Celtic Park, the player inexplicably avoided a red card for a dangerous tackle that left Kyogo concussed.

Celtic’s Derby Display Gets “As good as I’ve seen” Labelling From Callum McGregor

Soccer Football – Scottish Premiership – Rangers v Celtic – Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain – April 7, 2024 Celtic’s Matt O’Riley scores their second goal from the penalty spot Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff

Celtic captain Callum McGregor thinks that the Hoops’ performance at Ibrox in their 3-3 draw on Sunday was as good as any display he has seen from his teammates away from home in a derby.

In the first half, the visitors assumed total control. Daizen Maeda opened the scoring less than half a minute in before Matt O’Riley deftly chipped the ball home from 12 yards just after the half-hour mark.

Soccer Football – Scottish Premiership – Rangers v Celtic – Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain – April 7, 2024 Celtic’s Matt O’Riley scores their second goal from the penalty spot Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff

Things couldn’t have gone any better for The Bhoys in the maiden 45 minutes and although they eventually went on to draw the game from a position of utmost strength, McGregor is satisfied with how Celtic played.

The skipper only has one gripe from the game as he hailed his teammates’ performance. He said: [The Celtic Way] “They were superb, but the whole team were outstanding.

“We had the confidence to play through the pitch and we were a real threat at the top end as well. The team performance was as good as I’ve seen here.

“In terms of the first 45 minutes, I thought it was outstanding. The only criticism is that we maybe don’t get the third goal to give us more comfort in the game.

“Second half, we showed good personality to get through the sticky spells as well.”

Some fans will understandably be slightly disappointed at yesterday’s result, but with six league games to go, the Hoops’ title destiny remains within their hands.

The players know that if they win the last of their Premiership matches, they will be champions come mid-May.

Celtic’s McGregor didn’t dominate Rangers at Parkhead as Clement rebuffs claim

Philippe Clement has shut down suggestions that Callum McGregor dominated the Rangers midfield at Parkhead.

Derby veteran McGregor could make his injury comeback at Ibrox tomorrow after the Celtic skipper returned to training following an Achilles injury. The influential midfielder has lost just three Old Firm games since succeeding Scott Brown as club captain and has been the driving force behind the Parkhead club’s unprecedented success in recent years.

McGregor, 30, has earned the plaudits for his standout displays in both wins against Rangers this season but Clement doesn’t buy into claims the Scotland international outplayed the likes of Dujon Sterling and John Lundstram in December’s 2-1 defeat at Celtic Park.

He said: “I don’t agree that he dominated the play at Celtic Park. There were moments that he was good on the ball but there were also moments where he wasn’t dominating the game. I think my midfielders also dominated the game in moments.

“I saw the first game and it’s true he was dominating but I don’t need to say too much about that. He’s a very good player and he’s somebody with a lot of quality. He’s really good on the ball and he’s really important for their team so it’s important to take that strength out of their team and that’s one part you need to do but it’s not only about one player.”

Joe Hart wants Rangers golden ticket as Celtic goalkeeper names what fixture needs to keep global respect

Joe Hart’s gloves will have dried off on their retirement peg by the time away fans are welcomed back to the Old Firm arena next season.

But the veteran Celtic keeper insists that won’t stop him getting a proper grip on the atmosphere that’s been lost on derby day for way too long. Not when he hopes to be right in the middle of the travelling party as a punter rather than a player. The laid-back former England ace might not quite be Artur Boruc with a megaphone – but he’s serious about being a lifelong Hoops man after his three years in the east end of Glasgow.

It’s fair to say the Celtic buzz has taken hold of the goalkeeper after he grabbed the career lifeline thrown to him by Ange Postecoglou three years ago. Derby day certainly has and the 36-year-old insists the Old Firm needs away fans to keep the respect it has worldwide. Of course, Hart knows what he’s talking about having played in some of the biggest clashes in world football including Manchester and London versions and the Derby della Mole between Torino and Juventus during his stint in Serie A.

And while he may be fully focused on leaving another dent on Rangers by bagging one more double before calling it a day in the summer, he insists it won’t be goodbye when the time comes to give the Hoops faithful one last wave from the pitch. More a case of see you later.

Hart has welcomed the news that Celtic and Rangers will open their doors to away fans on derby day again as of next season. An agreement has been struck meaning five per cent – around 2500 for Celtic supporters at Ibrox – will be back.

Hart has felt the thunder of a 50/50 split in the stands between the rival clubs in Hampden clashes. But he’s never properly experienced a volume of visiting fans on Old Firm Premiership duty. And the former Manchester City ace admits that – while it means nothing ahead of this weekend’s colossal table topping clash at Ibrox or indeed the return at Parkhead – it will mean everything as of next season.

He said: “I’m going to remove myself from the situation I’m in now because my immediate reaction is that it means nothing to me. But if I was to the guy I’ll be when it’s going on it’ll be great.

“It’ll be a real buzz. I’ve played in a 50-50 split here when it was at Hampden and it was electric. I’ve come out the good side and come out the bad side. It’s emotional. Since I’ve been here we’ve had fans, I think the most has been 700-750 and it was strange at the start of the season, winning away and having no-one to put your gratitude towards.

“Because even though we played without supporters that day you still feel it in the build-up, to have your support and your club behind you. So it’ll be nice, it’ll be a great spectacle. Around the world this fixture is heavily respected and to keep that respect you need away supporters in there. You never know I might be one of those couple of thousand.”

Hart’s shock announcement that he’d be hanging up the gloves for good in the summer after 21 years and more than 700 professional games stopped British football in its tracks. At that point he said the subject was being parked until the end of the season. But as he prepares for the final – what he hopes will be nine – games of his career this week he said: “I genuinely look forward to supporting this club forever, it’s a part of me.

“This is me removing myself from a guy who doesn’t want to talk about what’s next but I look forward to being a football supporter at some point in my life. And this is one of the teams I’ll be a fan of.”

Cyriel Dessers dallies and is closed down by Alistair Johnston

Hart’s first taste of the Old Firm ended in a 1-0 defeat at Ibrox back in August 2021 just three weeks after he signed on the dotted line. But two victories and a draw in the next three league meetings helped Postecoglou’s side snatch the title back from their rivals across the River Clyde.

A dominant second season and wins in the first two derbies of the current campaign mean Hart has now won eight of his 13 meetings with Rangers and lost just three. If he could make that 10 wins in the remaining two league clashes of the season then a third Premiership title would be as good as in the bag. But whatever the outcome of the next two months, Hart insists he has memories for a lifetime.

A career that has seen the former Man City, Tottenham, Torino, West Ham and Birmingham shotstopper experience some of the most powerful fixtures in world football. But even the restrictions in the stands that have curbed some of the electricity on Old Firm day over the last three years haven’t lessened the impact for Hart. He said: “No, not really. If people don’t know then they don’t know.

“I do know and I know the build-up to these games is huge, the emotion to these games is huge. If you’re not winning world-wide acclaim or awards, who cares. When you’re in it, when you’re emotionally invested, I don’t care what anyone says, I know how it feels.”