‘RANGERS ARE NOT TOP-TIER QUALITY’

CELTIC striker Leigh Griffiths has expressed his ‘disappointment’ at the absence of Old Firm derbies in the Premiership for another season. But he believes the Ibrox team’s 6-1 aggregate defeat to Motherwell in the Play-Off Final showed they are not yet worthy of a return to the top flight. Griffiths, who scored the opening goal in Celtic’s 2-0 win over Rangers in the League Cup semi-final at Hampden in February, was hoping to sample more of the derby atmosphere in league games next season. After Rangers’ ‘journey’ was halted by the Steelmen, however, Griffiths lamented a missed opportunity to add to his goals tally against Celtic’s fierce rivals. ‘It is disappointing,’ he said. ‘As a Celtic player and a fan, you want Old Firm games. But over the two legs, Motherwell showed why they are still in the Premiership and Rangers aren’t. ‘You have to earn the right to be in the top league and they haven’t done that over the course of the season and then they were beaten in the Final. ‘Everybody is looking at Rangers and their failure to get to the top league — but they are overlooking how well Motherwell actually played. ‘They hadn’t won at Ibrox in about 20 years but showed grit and determination to get a result there. They just had to finish the job off on Sunday and they managed that. ‘Over the two games, Motherwell deservedly got the right result and you have to congratulate them.’ Griffiths denied that Rangers’ continued absence would automatically mean a stroll to five titles in a row for Celtic. He said: ‘We’ve won the league the last four years and want to do the same next year. ‘There will be stern tests from Aberdeen, Dundee United and Inverness but it’s all about what we do. If we play to our maximum, we’ll win the league. ‘How far are they (Rangers) from challenging? That’s not for me to say. I watched both their Play-Off games but I don’t keep tabs on what’s happening at Rangers. I’m fully focused on what’s happening at Celtic Park.’