Former Liverpool manager had the courage to join a one-horse race at Parkhead and after wrapping up the Scottish Premiership title has a rare Treble in his sightsThat retaining the Scottish title was a given for Brendan Rodgers when he took control at Celtic should not detract from the manner of that accomplishment. The fans will cherish a sixth title in a row – and well they might. The approach of the Celtic players from the first minute of this season, added to memory of the 1990s when those supporters looked on as Rangers lorded it over all and sundry, will contribute to worthwhile celebration. Related: Five-star Celtic dispatch Hearts to secure Scottish Premiership title Continue reading...
Millwall and Lincoln are in the mood for further upsets, José Mourinho has a tactical teaser at Chelsea and Rangers at risk of Old Firm derby embarrassmentThe FA Cup quarter-final at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday is a fitting way for Neil Harris to celebrate two years in charge of the club he loves. Regardless of the result, the club have been upwardly mobile under Harris, the club’s all-time record goalscorer. Harris initially took caretaker charge on 10 March 2015 before assuming the full-time position a month later. Their start to this season was tricky – at the end of September they had 12 points from 10 games – but now Harris’s side are only six points off the automatic promotion...
It is 30 years since Dundee United’s Uefa Cup quarter-final victory over Barcelona – and the reason for marking it now is the basic impossibity of it happening againOne of the nice things about paddling about in the vast sea of old football on the internet is the way everything remains the same in outline – flags, goals, grass, stands – but is also completely different: every surface made over and retouched, like the broom that changed its head and handle every six months for 30 years but somehow remains basically the same broom.Tommy Gemmell died this week aged 73 and will be remembered before Celtic’s match with St Mirren on Sunday. Looking back at his two European Cup finals with...
Englishman heads for the exit at Ibrox but he had to contend with financial problems, lack of boardroom support – and Celtic’s crushing superiorityThe outcome necessary to endorse Mark Warburton’s status as the Rangers manager will never arrive. Likewise, those sceptical about the 54-year-old’s ability to deliver a perfectly acceptable return at the end of this, Rangers’ first season back in Scottish football’s top flight, will never be able to speak with certainty.Such a state of flux rather sums up events at Ibrox, almost five years to the day since administration sent both Rangers and the Scottish game into such a tailspin that neither would ever be the same again. Related: Rangers announce Mark Warburton’s resignation – despite manager’s denial...
Hearts’ appointment of a young, innovative head coach in Ian Cathro should be applauded, but the reaction from many in the game was all too predictableSometimes the feeling prevails that Scottish football deserves all it gets. Certainly, when asking why the country’s national sport has been reduced to laughing‑stock status for so long, events of recent weeks would serve as a useful reference point. Where the attitude of the dark age is so prominent, where hypocrisy is rife, it really is no shock that Scotland continues to fail.Heart of Midlothian’s courting of Ian Cathro as the head coach to replace Robbie Neilson triggered some quite astonishing coverage. Cathro, at 30, has now taken over at the Edinburgh club. He has...