Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has been speaking to the media as his side prepare to face Rangers on Thursday.
Here are the main points:
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Rodgers knows doing well in derby means a lot to the players and stresses their committed to getting the victory and putting on a performance worthy of a win – “the players know how to win in this game”.
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The Celtic boss admits he treats every Old Firm game like it’s his first but understands “what it takes and what it means to win this game”.
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Having no Celtic fans at Ibrox doesn’t change his approach but the boss is hopeful this will be “the last one” without away supporters – “a Celtic support there or not there, we want to control the game
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On whether the pressure is on Rangers, who could go 17 points behind Celtic, Rodgers stresses “we will always assume the pressure, we put ourselves under pressure in the game” and insists nothing changes, regardless of the points gap.
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Rodgers adds his players “always stay in a humble way” to prepare for these games “we cannot soften up and we wont’ soften up”.
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The Celtic manager admits he has empathy for opposition coach Philippe Clement – “I have empathy for every manager and coach – until the spotlight is on you, you can never being to imagine what it feels like.”
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Rodgers knows it’s “a huge measure of any manager”, getting a victory in these games and stresses winning against your greatest rivals is very important.