Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has a warning for Rangers ahead of final Old Firm meeting

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Celtic travel to Ibrox to face Glasgow Rangers in the Scottish Premiership in the final meeting between the pair of the season.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers

Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers has told the club’s official website that he expects Rangers to put up a much better showing than they did in the Scottish Cup semi-final last weekend, but warned Pedro Caixinha that his side can also raise their game.

The Hoops booked their place in the final with a comfortable 2-0 win at Hampden Park to keep their treble hopes alive and leave Rangers still seeking their first win over their bitter rivals heading into their sixth meeting of the campaign.

And while the Gers’ abject performance would give Caixinha’s men a tremendous amount of motivation to put in a much better display when they meet at Ibrox, and Rodgers insisted that he expects that to be the case, the Celtic boss was adamant that there was also more to come from his side.

“Our unbeaten record isn’t on the line. It’s the three points that are on the line. We could play magnificently and something goes against us and that’s out-with our control. What we can control is how we play and how we perform. It’s about how we cope with pressure and the players have shown that they can do that,” he told the club’s official website.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers with Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha

“I’m only thinking about Celtic. I’m sure Pedro will want his team to play better and their players will want to play better, but we can play better. I’m sure it will be a good game.”

While Celtic have the title wrapped up and they will likely suggest that their main focus will be the upcoming final with Aberdeen, there is no doubt that keeping the bragging rights and maintaining their unbeaten record will also be driving the team to try and repeat the result from last week.

But Rangers will surely also be determined, with their most recent Old Firm display suggesting that they may have actually taken a step back since the meeting before that – when they drew 1-1 at Parkhead, and arguably looked to be good value for the draw – and with the knowledge that only a flawless run will give them a chance of finishing second in the table.