The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
CELTIC RANGERS
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eltic captain Scott Brown insisted it was an honour to be part of the Hoops side which beat Rangers 5-0 to win the club’s seventh successive Premiership title at Parkhead yesterday.
The Hoops had lost 2-1 to Hibernian at Easter Road last week which meant the opportunity was there to clinch the title in front of their own fans against the Light Blues for the first time since 1979.
Odsonne Edouard, the 20-year-old French striker on loan from Paris St Germain, scored a first-half double with James Forrest adding a third before the break. Midfielders Tom Rogic and Callum McGregor added further goals in the second period to register Celtic’s biggest league win over the Ibrox club.
Brendan Rodgers’ side have now moved to within a William Hill Scottish Cup final win over Motherwell of a historic second successive domestic treble.
Midfielder Brown, 32, who has now won eight titles since joining Celtic from Hibernian in 2007, said: “It was lovely, the way we’ve done it.
“The sun was shining and it was against Rangers as well, it was all about our performance today.
“We let ourselves down last week against Hibs but we managed to bounce back, and we bounced back in style.
“We worked on how we were going to press all week and we demonstrated that out on the park.
“The title hasn’t been won against Rangers for a long time and it is great. It is a great honour to be here when we’ve done it.
“To do seven in a row as well is fantastic but there is a lot more work ahead now, a few more games before the Scottish Cup final.”
Asked if it was his best game in football, Edouard, speaking through an interpreter, said: “Certainly, I am going to remember this all my life because it is my first title.
“I am very happy for the team and myself, and to be able to win the title against Rangers in front of our fans is a pleasure for everyone.”
When subsequently asked if the title win would make him want to make his move to the Parkhead club permanent, Edouard added: “Most important thing is we have won the title today, the season is not over.
“We have the Scottish Cup final to play and hopefully after that there will be time for discussing options. I love this club and if the decision was up to me I would like to stay, but I can only do so much.”
Meanwhile, Rangers are confident of appointing former Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard as manager.
The Light Blues are understood to have held talks with the 37-yearold, who is a youth development coach at Anfield.
It is also believed that former Scotland international Gary McAllister has agreed to be Gerrard’s assistant with Reds youth coach Tom Culshaw also set to swap Anfield for Ibrox.
Gerrard turned down the opportunity to manage MK Dons in November 2016, claiming the offer came “too soon” for him.
“Most important thing is we have won the title, the season is not over”