Del bridge not Burned
BY GAVIN BERRY CHRIS WOOD believes Derek McInnes will be back on the radar of English clubs after running Burnley so close in the Battle of Britain.
And the £15million Clarets star hopes he can lead Aberdeen to a title so his stock rises further.
Wood worked under McInnes during a loan spell at Bristol City.
And he said: “Things didn’t work out for him in England. But he should be very proud of what he has achieved at Pittodrie.
“He’ll be looking to improve and hopefully nick that title one year.
“There will always be offers for him and the games against Burnley will help him.” STRAP yourself in for the most exciting season I can recall in Scottish football.
In terms of interest, intrigue, sub-plots and the standard of the teams, it’s hard not to be enthused by what lies ahead over the next 10 months.
Brendan Rodgers, Steven Gerrard, Derek McInnes, Neil Lennon and Craig Levein at the big clubs, the likes of Kenny Miller and Alan Stubbs coming into the top flight to join excellent workers such as Steve Clarke, Tommy Wright and Stephen Robinson.
Maybe the improved displays of the teams in Europe have also whetted the appetite but standards seem to be on the up and I make no bones about being positive about the campaign ahead.
Everyone is concentrating on Rodgers against Gerrard. Why wouldn’t you? It’s box office.
Celtic run the show in Scotland and there isn’t much doubt they should do again. They still have work to do in the transfer market and will add quality, yet the squad as it stands is strong enough to seal eight in a row.
The title flag will be unfurled before today’s game with Livingston but the Champions League remains the big focus right now and many eyes are already switched to AEK Athens on Wednesday.
It’s a tough tie. It’s actually a scandal that the champions of Scotland are having to play the champions of Greece for a place in the next qualifying round of the Champions League but we’ve talked enough about that.
Celtic can do a job on the Greeks but it will be tense and they will be tested.
Kristoffer Ajer and Jack Hendry deserved plaudits for their display against Rosenborg in midweek but the Norwegians were bang average and stiffer tests lie ahead. I’ll reserve judgment until they have been passed.
Moussa Dembele’s absence is a big blow. It’s up to Odsonne Edouard to fill the breach.
Rangers need to mount a stronger challenge and the early signs are positive that there will be real improvement.
Four games, no defeats and just a deflected goal lost. Gerrard looks to have instilled a solidity with Allan McGregor joined by Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic to strengthen the backline.
Osijek were a decent outfit. Not great but still the type of team who would have dumped Rangers out last season.
Yet Gerrard found a way to get the job done. Goals and creativity TURNING up at Burnley on Thursday was an eye opener. I hardly expected a red carpet from the punters having won a Premier League title with their bitter rivals Blackburn but I was hounded.
It was 50 times worse than anything I’ve ever experienced in Scotland and some of it was hilarious.
They were at it all game and the