Dons still our closest rivals, insists Lustig

MIKAEL LUSTIG insists Aberdeen will be Celtic’s closest challengers again this season — even if there is no reason to believe the Parkhead club’s 60-game unbeaten run will fall at Pittodrie in midweek.

The Swedish right-back insists Brendan Rodgers’ side have earned the right to believe they should win every single match domestically as a result of their record-breaking hot streak.

However, he is preparing for a battle royal in Wednesday’s top-of-the-table Pittodrie clash and believes the Dons will carry on pushing Celtic harder than Rangers as the campaign develops.

‘It looks that way because they

look quite strong,’ said Lustig. ‘They have done really well, had the same manager for a while, have mostly the same players and seem to be getting stronger.

‘It will be a tough game, but we go into every game feeling we are the favourites.

‘I don’t know if it needs to be something special, especially if we haven’t lost in 60 games, but we know it is a hard place to go.

‘Every match we go into, we know we are favourites and we should win the game.

‘But even if we win 1-0 or 2-1, we are not satisfied because we know we have not played as well as we should, to the level we can get to. We also want to be a good European side.’

Lustig put Celtic 2-0 up in the first half with an unexpected brace, his celebrations offering more than a nod to a Twitter video popular among Celtic fans which shows him pretending to play the keyboards in the gym.

‘It has been a while and it is nice to play the keyboard again,’ he smiled. ‘I knew it was going to come up on Twitter, so it is good I can also do it on the pitch as well. I’m not sure we’re going to see that celebration again.

‘It was not the best finishing. I didn’t hit the ball cleanly, but that is probably why they have both gone in.

‘It is often like that. You can go 20 or 30 games without a goal and, suddenly, you are there at the right time.’

Celtic are in the middle of a taxing run of high-profile fixtures, with the Aberdeen match followed by a home game against Kilmarnock and then the return with Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

He believes the extra space at Hampden, however, suits the Scottish champions’ style.

‘It is a nice big pitch and we can keep the ball better,’ he added. ‘Celtic Park is now better because we have changed the pitch there, but Hampden is good because it is big and we can make the opposition run.’