Rodgers sees ‘no great change’ in Ferguson’s Rangers

After a 3-0 defeat in January, Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers claims his team are “hungry” to reclaim Glasgow bragging rights and that Rangers have “a lot of the same traits” under Barry Ferguson.

Callum McGregor is a doubt for Rangers’ Sunday game against the Canaries, but Rodgers will “wait until the very last moment” to choose his captain.

The reigning champions’ 16-point lead over their derby rivals in the Scottish Premiership is “celebrity-rangers,” Rodgers said, “This is not a game you want to lose, no matter how far ahead you are.”

Rangers have won at Kilmarnock and Fenerbahce but lost to the Turkish side and Motherwell at Ibrox under interim head coach Ferguson, who has saved their best for away games and in the Europa League.

Rodgers described the former Rangers captain as “a player” who “knows him as a player” and “knows he’s gone in and will have a great connection with his supporters.”

His success at the club, his history, were both outstanding for them. Over the course of four games, if I only consider the coaching aspect of it, I don’t see much change.

The team has changed the system, I’ve witnessed. Absolutely a wise tactical transition at Fenerbahce to go 5-4-1. However, I continue to notice many of the same characteristics: some excellent performances, some inconsistent behavior.

A Celtic-Rangers game will always be a difficult one, according to Rodgers, regardless of whether he was in for four or forty games.

The Celtic manager doesn’t take any account of Rangers’ need for extra time and penalties to defeat Fenerbahce on Thursday, whether it be fatigue or confidence.

Rodgers recalled a time when his Leicester City team faced a “schedule exhausting” peak before facing a “more rested” peak Liverpool and still won.

He praised Rangers for making it to the quarter-finals, saying that “his own team’s success was a result of his own team’s consistency and mentality.” The Celtic manager suggested that “it shows consistency and mentality” to be in front of such adversaries in the title race.

“We never performed anywhere near what the demand for the game was in the previous game,” Rodriguez said. We are very eager to correct that in this game.