Celtic aces should RETIRE if title isn’t a wrap, says Erik
ERIK SVIATCHENKO last night described Celtic as Scottish football’s flagship and admitted all his team-mates should retire if they don’t win the league.
And the Danish defender handed out another warning to their rivals when he revealed Celtic never tire of winning and that planning has already begun to ensure the club plays Champions League football next season.
Talk of titles and Trebles has been banned by Brendan Rodgers, but it is getting almost impossible for any of his players not to mention the joint goals of a clean sweep and going through the domestic campaign unbeaten.
Sviatchenko said: “We are a flagship for
Scottish football at the moment, but teams like Rangers, Aberdeen and Hearts make it a good league as well and it is exciting to be part of it for me. We have respect for our opponents.
“Although we should all probably stop playing football if we don’t win the championship this season.
“But there are plenty of other goals we are striving for. We have already overtaken the unbeaten record of the Lisbon Lions from 50 years ago and we want to create a record no one can ever beat.
“And our preparations for the Champions League for next season started the day we were knocked out this year’s competition.
“We have a project in the Champions League for four or five years. It’s a natural part of being a big club to do well in that.”
Sviatchenko also defended Scottish football and insists the league is not a complete walkover for the Parkhead side, even if Rodgers’ men are aiming to win the title by a record margin, clinch the Treble and not lose a single game.
Celtic’s dominance has led to claims the Scottish top flight is a one-horse race.
However, one of the key players for the champions-elect insists that’s not the case and reckons there are plenty of tough games in Scotland. Sviatchenko said: “I never get tired of winning.
“Although we have had a lot of winning games, we have had to work hard for them and, regardless of what people think, they don’t happen by themselves.
“We are the favourites in every game, but it can be hard. For example, St Johnstone were 2-1 up on us the other week.
“We have to keep going at the highest level if we want to continue our winning streak. There are plenty of other leagues in Europe where there has been a big difference between the league leaders and the rest.
“That’s certainly been true in Spain and France in the past and also Denmark right now.
“Here in Scotland, our opponents play aggressive football and are good at organising themselves against us. There are no matches that are a walkover – often we just win by one goal.”