Celtic can ‘really hurt’ Rangers after source reveals signings plan ahead of January – pundit
Celtic must “take advantage” of the struggle at Rangers and look to “hurt” their bitter rivals in the coming months, according to Noel Whelan.
The former Aberdeen striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, insisted the Parkhead side will be “smelling blood” after recent events – including the departure of Steven Gerrard.
A Celtic source told Football Insider that the club are planning major reinforcements in January and multiple signings are likely as they plan to wrest Rangers’ crown away.
Celtic reached the Scottish League Cup final on Saturday (November 20th) after beating St Johnstone.
They will have the opportunity to win the first silverware of the season on December 19th.
In the other semi-final, Rangers were beaten 3-1 by Hibernian, with defender Connor Goldson telling Premier Sports post-match that the Gers players have “lost their hunger”.
Whelan insisted recent events are a “really good sign” for Celtic’s title aspirations.
“They will be smelling blood for sure after what they saw from Rangers at the weekend,” he told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury.
“There’s a trophy which they will absolutely be favourites to win in December, barring a catastrophe.
“It’s a really good sign for Celtic, they’ll be fighting all the way to bring the title back to Celtic Park.
“On the pitch, they are keeping pace. They’ve scored a lot of goals this season, their goal difference is already superior to Rangers’.
“They need to take advantage from now and into the January window. They can really hurt them in these early stages of Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s tenure.”
Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side sit four points behind Rangers after 13 games.
Van Bronckhorst succeeded Gerrard at Ibrox on Thursday.
In other news, ex-Fifa referee heaps praise on “brilliant” Nick Walsh after analysing under-the-radar Celtic footage.