Saturday's Scottish gossip

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Dundee United boss Jackie McNamara says the pressure of delivering a domestic treble is getting to Ronny Deila. The Celtic manager has slammed United players Aidan Connelly and Ryan McGowan after recent matches between the sides, but McNamara says Deila's outbursts "are not helpful or accurate". (Sun)

Virgil van Dijk says winning the treble would help his case for inclusion in Guus Hiddink's Dutch national squad. (Daily Record)

United's Nadir Ciftci claims Scottish referees are biased in favour of Celtic. "Nothing happens to the players of Celtic," is the view of the Turkish striker. (Sun)

Denayer joined Celtic on-loan from Manchester City in the summer of 2014

Deila meanwhile has urged defender Jason Denayer to stay at Parkhead for "at least half a year more". The Belgian is due to return to Manchester City when his loan deal expires at the end of the season. (The Herald)

And the Norwegian has thrown down the gauntlet to out-of-favour striker Stefan Scepovic to prove his worth at Celtic. The Serbian international has struggled to make an impact since arriving from Sporting Gijon last summer, but Deila says Scepovic will get his chance and he "has to be ready". (Daily Express)

Rangers manager Stuart McCall reveals the Ibrox club are paying towards the wages of the five Newcastle players they have on loan deals, despite the fact that two of them - Shane Ferguson and Gael Bigirimana - will likely never play for them. (Daily Record)

Ahead of the match between the sides at Easter Road, Hibs boss Alan Stubbs says Stuart McCall is the right man get Rangers back on track. (Sun)

Lee Wallace admits many of the Rangers squad could not contemplate facing another season in the Championship if they miss out on promotion. The full-back also says the "mental strain of the last three years is more difficult than anyone can imagine. (Scotsman)

Falkirk midfielder Tom Taiwo believes his side can make Wallace's Rangers nightmare come true by overhauling the Ibrox club to secure a Championship play-off berth. (Daily Express)

Ian Barraclough hailed his Motherwell side's 4-0 derby win as "a sweet one for our fans"

Motherwell manager Ian Baraclough was delighted with the derby victory over Hamilton which took his side four points clear of bottom club St Mirren, calling the win "a sweet one for our fans". (Sun)

Kilmarnock winger Chris Johnston says his side can finish in the top six this season - and believes if they do it could secure the Rugby Park manager's job on a long-term basis for interim boss Gary Locke. (Daily Express)

St Mirren manager Gary Teale has targeted 12 points from his side's final nine games of the season as the Buddies look to fight their way out of relegation trouble. (Daily Express)

Scottish players are almost certain not to be involved in the Rio Olympics in 2016 as part of Team GB. Fifa confirmed that all four home nations must be in support of the plan for them to sanction Team GB's inclusion in the Games, but with the SFA and Welsh FA strongly opposed, the idea appears to be dead in the water. (Scotsman)

OTHER GOSSIP

Ireland captain Paul O'Connell says he's "definitely concerned" about the threat posed by Scotland at Murrayfield today, despite Vern Cotter's side's dismal record of four defeat from four matches in this season's Six Nations. (The Herald)