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Two ex Celtic stars in frame for Parkhead coaching role amid reshuffle

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Charlie Mulgrew and Jonny Hayes are both in the frame to become a coach at Celtic under-18s.

Both of the former Hoops stars are keen on embarking on a coaching career and their old club have a vacancy with their youth team after Stuart McLaren left earlier this year. Mulgrew and Hayes are believed to be in the frame but are not the only contenders and will have competition.

Hayes is still a contracted player at Aberdeen but hasn’t featured in a first-team game since February and wasn’t named among the subs for the semi-final defeat to Celts at the weekend. He has been combining his playing duties by assisting with coaching the Pittodrie club’s under-18s side.

Ally McCoist in Celtic and Rangers defence as Ibrox hero clamps Jeff Stelling

Ally McCoist has clamped Jeff Stelling after a bizarre rant about Celtic and Rangers’ upcoming Scottish Cup final.

Philippe Clement’s side booked their place in the final to take on Brendan Rodgers’ with a 2-0 win over Hearts at Hampden yesterday. A day before, the Hoops had taken part in a six-goal thriller over 120 minutes with Aberdeen, drawing 2-2 after 90 and 3-3 after extra-time before emerging victorious on penalties.

That means they will play each other in the last two for the first time since 2002, remarkably. That day, Gers were the winners after coming from behind to win 3-2 through a late Peter Lovenkrands winner. They’ve certainly played each other in the semis plenty during that time, and have played at that stage four out of the last five years.

So Stelling wasn’t buying it when Coisty and Shebahn Aherne were discussing the quirk of the lack of finals on the talkSPORT breakfast show.

He asked: “Have they played each other a lot in the semi-finals? So that’s why they’re not getting to the final, because they’re knocking each other out before then.

“For God’s sake, every English football fan will be thinking ‘Rangers against Celtic? There’s a surprise!’ Why don’t they just play each other every week? Forget the rest!”

But McCoist swatted that aside: “Jeff, I have to inform you that we up here don’t give a monkey’s what every English football fan thinks!

“Yesterday’s game was a good one, Rangers vs Hearts. The one on Saturday, what a game by the way. Celtic-Aberdeen, a brilliant game to watch, finished 3-3, Celtic won on penalties. What a game of football.”

Aherne appeared to pledge her allegiance to Celtic, adding: “Come on the Bhoys! We’ll end it on that…”

Rodgers jokes Celtic players will need therapy after epic Hampden win

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers joked that his players will need therapy sessions after a nail-biting penalty shoot-out win over Aberdeen.

The holders booked a place in the Scottish Cup final against either Hearts or Rangers but only after sharing six goals with Aberdeen after extra time, and then triumphing 6-5 on penalties.

Rodgers has never lost a Scottish Cup tie, or suffered a defeat at Hampden as Celtic boss, but he was put through the wringer before Joe Hart saved Killian Phillips’ spot kick. And that moment of drama only came after the Celtic goalkeeper had hit the post when taking a penalty himself.

Aberdeen had taken the lead through Bojan Miovski after two minutes but Nicholas Kuhn levelled for Celtic in the first half. After the break, substitute James Forrest put Celtic ahead, only for Ester Sokler to head in a last-gasp equaliser and force extra time.

Matt O’Riley restored Celtic’s lead in the first half of extra time but Aberdeen stand-in captain Angus MacDonald headed in another equaliser in the 119th minute to take the tie to penalties.

“It was a fantastic game,” Rodgers said. “I said to the players, we don’t need football sessions over the next couple of days, we need therapy sessions after that.

“It will stand us in good stead going forward.

“Listen, it is part of the game, if you don’t close it out, then that can happen.

“We had to put it to one side, once we went to extra-time, and then didn’t quite see it through and then you have to focus on penalties, and what we worked on in the last couple of days. The players just had to commit to their side of the goal and they did that very well.”

The Celtic boss thought both teams played their part in delivering an exciting spectacle and said his players showed “big heart and real nerve” to keep responding to setbacks. He also credited substitute James Forrest with playing a vital role after the veteran winger came off the bench to score.

“Big credit to both sets of players,” he said. “We made a disappointing start in the game. They get the goal and scored a very good goal but our players came back into it, get the equaliser and then we get a bit more control in the game.

“At the beginning of the second half we started to find our rhythm and control the ball a lot more. And that allows us then to create opportunities. Jamesie Forrest coming in was brilliant in the game.

“He gives us that ability to keep the ball because in the first half we arrive up in the final third of the pitch and we, we weren’t securing the ball. So he comes in and starts to combine, starts to keep the ball and gets the goal. And then we’ve got other chances to close the game out.

“But credit to Aberdeen as well because they kept fighting. They kept coming back. but by the end the players showed a big heart and, real nerve to win the shoot-out.”

Rodgers also praised Joe Hart for showing a strong mentality after the goalkeeper missed his own penalty in the shoot-out but then saved from Phillips to put Celtic in the final.

“We were going through it in the last couple of days and he was one of the designated takers, for the fifth one,” the manager said.

“I think he is trying to get it as wide as he can, he sees their goalkeeper (Kelle Roos) is injured, he is trying to move him as much as he can in the goal.

“But he lets it go and comes up and makes the crucial save for us.

“Joe is very upbeat and positive. I always say to players to take risks, and he is a very good penalty taker, we see it in training.

“He has taken it, he has missed it, but he didn’t get down on himself, and ended up being the hero.”

Rangers have ‘handed title back’ to Celtic and ‘lucky’ Rodgers, claims pundit

Simon Jordan launched a scathing rant on Rangers as he blasted Philippe Clement and his squad for ‘handing the title’ to Celtic and “lucky” Brendan Rodgers.

The outspoken pundit took aim at both Celtic and Rangers in a lengthy monologue on talkSPORT as he revealed he wanted Rangers to win the league.

Jordan – who previously owned Crystal Palace – reckons the title is all but Celtic’s as he hammered Rangers for taking just one point in their previous two outings against Ross County and Dundee.

The pundit explained: “Of course he [Clement] has to carry the can. The team reflects leadership. Whilst it’s very easy and I’m very happy to apportion significant amounts of blame to players and their approach to games, he’s the manager. It’s his team and the performance against Ross County was unacceptable.

“No disrespect to Ross County but they should be cannon fodder to Rangers and they weren’t His reaction was one of disappointment and you would have expected a bounceback. Not just because of all the noise around this fixture and all that went on last week, but because they needed a bounce back. You’re trying to win the league.

“They’ve just handed it back to Celtic. So to win this league – despite the protestations of (Graeme) Souness that there will be twists and turns and he’s probably right – now people are probably set in stone that they’ll probably win all their games going forward. Even though we’ve seen a performance in the last two games that doesn’t necessary detail that.

“But they haven’t laid a glove on Celtic. So they’ve got to go there, if they match one another’s results, and beat them five. So really and truly, they’ve handed the title back to Celtic and Brendan Rodgers, who I think has been a bit of a flake for the last 18 months, gets out from underneath it.

“It’s not done and there may well be another twist and turn. But the conversation that we’re having is because Rangers have taken one point from six in two games that they should have won. They shouldn’t be getting beat by Ross County. They just shouldn’t with due respect to the team that’s sitting second from bottom of the league. You have to question yourselves.

“Okay, you take a point at Dundee. But you don’t lose to Ross County and the conversation is different. This is why the conversation now abounds as to what happens next, because Rangers opened the door to it. To a situation that was in their control – it’s no longer in their control. It’s potentially in Celtic’s control. If Celtic do their job, they win the league.”

Jordan – concluding his rant on the title race in Scotland – revealed he wanted a Rangers triumph this term to “drag everybody else up”.

And he branded Rodgers “lucky” as he called out the manager for being “irritating”.

Jordan said: “I wanted Rangers to win this league because I like to see the two Scottish giants equally as strong as one another, because it drags everybody else up.

“I don’t want the top pulled down; I want the bottom pulled up in Scottish football. I want more money in Scottish football and the other teams in the pyramid to be better. I want this factory of young Scottish players coming through that produced the Hansens, Sounesses, Dalglishes and McGrains.

“Part of that will be if the Scottish league is better funded. Part of that will be if the two top Scottish teams are good in Europe, good in their league and it’s competitive. That’s been part of the reason I wanted Rangers to be successful.

“The other part is because Brendan Rodgers has been irritating me recently. I think he was a flake at Leicester and I think he’s been lucky at Celtic.”

Neil McCann thinks Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers said something which impacted Rangers last weekend

Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, is one of the most experienced managers in the Scottish Premiership.

As well as winning two trebles at Celtic, Rodgers guided Swansea City into the EPL. And after a year of managing The Swans, he took over at Anfield and took Liverpool to within a whisker of the Premier League title.

An FA Cup and Community Shield win at Leicester City was also followed up by taking The Foxes to the semi-final of the Europa Conference League.

So when it comes to experience in the game, Celtic have one of the best. And that was on show on Saturday after Celtic’s win over St Mirren.

Rodgers playing ‘psychological warfare’ with Rangers

We told earlier this week how Rodgers put pressure on Rangers with his post-match Celtic comments after the St Mirren win.

Pat Nevin noted how the Celtic manager turned the screw on his city rivals and this is a view now shared by former Rangers striker, Neil McCann.

McCann said [Scottish Football Podcast], “I did the games at the weekend and I thought Brendan Rodgers’ post-match presser, his interview was something of the psychology element about it.

“You know he was saying, ‘We’re Celtic, this is when we come alive.’

“And it was almost as if you read between the lines, that’s what I did, I looked at it and I thought, ‘He’s just applying a bit of gentle pressure that they [Rangers] will hear.’

“Now whether they don’t watch highlights or they don’t read papers or whatever I think they will be generally aware of comments.

“And it’s just an application of psychological warfare that happens at this time of the season particularly when the two sides are so close together.”

Rodgers has pulled on all his managerial experience this season to guide Celtic to the top of the table. Tinkering with the squad to cope with injury issues, rallying the fans and calling out the media narrative surrounding the club, the Hoops gaffer has been on top of his game when the pressure has been on.

And after Nevin and McCann’s comments, Rodgers pulled a managerial masterstroke last weekend that could have turned the title in Celtic’s favour without doing anything on the park.

Celtic fan dies ahead of Parkhead clash as tributes paid to ‘fierce’ club stalwart

Tributes have been paid to a Celtic fan who tragically died before their match against St Mirren.

Emergency services raced to the Glasgow stadium at around 2.45pm on Saturday after receiving a report of concern for a woman in the toilets. Police confirmed a 54-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Alison McGoff has been named locally as the woman who sadly passed away.

Tributes were left online for the popular Celtic fan and political campaigner.

Police have confirmed that her death is not being treated as suspicious.

St Margaret’s Celtic Supporters Club paid tribute to their member, their post read: “Sadly one of our members Alison McGoff passed away at Celtic Park yesterday. A sad day for our club. Alison you will be missed may you RIP.”

MP Steven Bonnar paid tribute to Alison, after the pair had campaigned together during the 2014 referendum.

He said: “Rest In Peace, Alison McGoff. We campaigned for Independence together in 2014 and Alison was a polling agent for me in 2019. In so many respects she was a kindred spirit. May she rest in eternal peace.

“Though she be but little, she is fierce”

Drew Quinn said: “Life will never be the same. I loved you first. I love you still. I love you forever.”

Celtic confirmed the tragedy and sent their ‘most sincere condolences’ to the family.

They said: “We regret to confirm that tragically, a 54-year old woman died suddenly at Celtic Park prior to yesterday’s match.

“Her next of kin have been informed and we would like to extend our most sincere condolences to her family. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are very much with them following this tragic incident.

“Celtic will provide all necessary support we can at this time.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We were made aware of concern for a woman within toilets at Celtic Park in Glasgow around 2.45pm on Saturday, April 13.

“Emergency services attended but the 54-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

“The death is not being treated as suspicious and a report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.”

Celtic insider reveals bargain Adam Idah permanent transfer fee

It would be a ‘crying shame’ if Celtic didn’t buy Adam Idah this summer, according to Chris Sutton.

The striker – who ex-Celts hero Sutton feels was terribly unlucky not to be the derby winner last weekend – has six goals in just nine games for Brendan Rodgers’ side.

The Republic of Ireland international has made an impressive impact on the team since his January loan arrival from Norwich City.

And Sutton has declared that a £3m offer should be enough to tempt another of his former sides into selling the 23-year-old to the Glasgow giants.

He wrote in his Daily Record column: “It’s a shame to have this pitch and VAR nonsense on the back of last weekend, where Scottish football was shown in the best possible light.

“The Old Firm game was a tremendous showcase – then days later it’s back to the circus. It’s drama we want, not chaos. Hopefully there will be more of the former this weekend and none of the latter.

“The season is now at the crucial stage and there can be no slip-ups in the title race. It will be interesting to see if Celtic kick on now with the likes of Callum McGregor and Reo Hatate coming back to fitness.

“The one thing you noticed last weekend was the bench was much stronger than it has been. You look at the impact Adam Idah had when he came on. There’s an argument he should have been introduced sooner, but he put himself about and was unlucky not to be the match winner.

“I thought some of the criticism of Jack Butland was harsh as it was a tremendous finish from the Irishman for the third goal, through the defender and right down low towards the keeper’s leg. If it wasn’t for Rabbi Matondo’s sublime equaliser, Idah would have gone down as an Old Firm hero.

“As it was, he has only added to his case for a permanent transfer this summer. That’s six goals in just nine games for Idah – and only six starts– and I’m sure Norwich City fans will be wondering where it’s come from.

“I don’t. I’ve always said he has the ability and sometimes it just needs a change of scenery for a player to spark into life. By all accounts, Idah was the one who really pushed for the move to Celtic and he’s really grabbed his chance. It wasn’t easy when he came in but he’s won over a lot of supporters.

“There was some talk when he arrived that it would cost around £3m to get him on a permanent deal and if that’s the figure this summer, it would be an absolute steal. Idah has shown he can bring something different to the attack. Kyogo will always be the main man when fit, but it’s important to have a different option in certain games or coming off the bench.

“When you consider some of the cash spent on strikers at Celtic in recent years, that would be small change to land a player who still has more developing to do and plenty of potential. If Idah does the business in the remainder of the campaign it would be a crying shame not to buy him.”

20 rumoured Rangers and Celtic summer transfer targets so far including Liverpool and Wolves stars

Rangers and Celtic have already been linked with a wide range of stars as the summer transfer window closes in.

Brendan Rodgers and Philippe Clement’s side are neck and neck in this season’s Premiership title race. Next campaign will likely be no different but if either side wants to steal a march, they may need to invest in their playing squad.

Since the close of the January window, rumours have been flying, with Jefte one star Rangers are already said to be after following a failed winter pursuit. But he is just one of many players who have been reported as in the sights of both the Light Blues and Celtic.

To meet our list, the player must have been reported as a target, or they or a manager must have addressed links to either Rangers or Celtic. In the case of Anwar El Ghazi and Oli McBurnie, declarations of wanting to play for either club are also accepted. Pundit suggestions – like Motherwell’s Lennon Miller – will not be counted. So let’s see who is involved

1. Michael Zetterer (Celtic, goalkeeper)

 

2. Fotis Ioannidis (striker, Celtic)

Current club: Panathinaikos

 

3. Arnaud Bodart (goalkeeper, Rangers and Celtic)

Current club: Standard Liege

 

4. Fabio Silva (striker, Rangers)

Current club: Wolves (on loan at Rangers)

5. Ugurcan Cakir (Celtic, goalkeeper)

Current club: Trabzonspor Photo:

6. Mathias Kvistgaarden (Celtic, striker)

Current club: Brondby

7. Callum O’Hare (midfielder, Rangers and Celtic)

Current club: Coventry City

8. Eduard Spertsyan (winger, Celtic)

Current club: Krasnodar Photo: GINTS IVUSKANS

9. Jake Clarke-Salter (defender, Celtic)

Current club: QPR

10. Oli McBurnie (striker, Rangers)

Current club: Sheffield United

11. Paulo Bernardo (midfielder, Celtic)

Current club: Benfica (on loan at Celtic)

12. Mezi Ikemba (striker, Celtic)

Current club: San Antonio

13. Abdallah Sima (winger, Rangers)

Current club: Brighton (on loan at Rangers)

14. Etienne Vaessen (goalkeeper, Celtic)

Current club: RKC Waalwijk

15. Jefte (left-back, Rangers)

Current club: Fluminense (on loan at APOEL)

16. Caoimhin Kelleher (goalkeeper, Celtic)

Current club: Liverpool

17. Abdellah Zoubir (winger, Celtic)

Current club: Qarabag

18. Bojan Miovski (striker, Rangers and Celtic)

Current club: Aberdeen

19. Anwar El Ghazi

Last club: Mainz

20. Sammie Szmodics (attacking midfielder, Celtic)

Current club: Blackburn Rovers

 

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