To cherish, whatever today’s result

forward for us in our together.”

The Northern Irishman readily accepts the high expectations that come with being Celtic manager.

He went on: “When you do win the Scottish Cup and the league, if you haven’t qualified for the Champions League you are not very good either. There’s always something.

“Since I came in, tangible progress has been made in terms of the profile of the club, the level of our game, trophies and, importantly for me, performance.

“There will always be the next landmark for a club like Celtic. “Can we win the European Cup? “You should always look forward and not behind.”

The Hoops haven’t beaten Rangers in a Scottish Cup semi-final since 1925 but Rodgers dismissed talk of a 92-year jinx.

first season

He said: “Do you know how many games there have been in that time? Four. “It’s not even worth talking about. “If you were telling me they were playing every year or every other year, then it is a statistic.”

Rangers’ boss Pedro Caixinha isn’t big on statistics but he does like predicting opposition team line-ups.

Some might suggest he does it to plant a seed of doubt in the mind of his opposite number.

Rodgers says he’s not unsettled by any mind games.

He maintained: “I’m only worried about my team.

“He’s a nice guy, Pedro. I met him at the Under- 17s cup final with the kids the other night. Let’s see if his team selection is right.”

At this time last year, Rodgers was at his nephew’s christening in Belfast while Rangers were beating Celtic on penalties in the Scottish Cup semi-final.

He doesn’t believe the events of that afternoon will have any bearing on today’s clash.

He said: “When I came in there was a feeling that Hampden wasn’t a good place for Celtic.

“I said ‘ok, you’d better make it a good place because we want to win trophies in finals’.

“Twice we’ve been there and been outstanding in performance and result.

“It’s not like it’s the first time back after a year.

“It’s a different manager, a different team, a different mentality going into the game.

“We go into it ready, like we have been from the very first game of the season.”