Scottish Gossip: Celtic, Champions League, Rangers, Hibernian, Hearts

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Celtic winger Scott Sinclair, who scored twice against Astana, feels back to being the player Manchester City once paid £10m for. (Daily Record)

Celtic, 5-0 up against play-off opponents Astana at the midway stage of their tie, will land a place in pot three of this season's Champions League draw if they and Croatian side Rijeka progress, with the Croatian side trailing Olympiakos 2-1 after their first leg. (Sun)

Goalkeeper Craig Gordon expects Celtic and Scotland team-mate Stuart Armstrong to rediscover his best form after finalising his imminent new three-year contract with the Scottish champions. (Daily Record)

Armstrong is expected to follow Gordon in committing his future to Celtic

One of Gordon's predecessors in goal for Celtic, Pat Bonner, hopes his former club draw Champions League holders Real Madrid in the group stage. (Sun)

Rangers have commissioned a feasibility study into a proposal for a safe standing area at Ibrox. (Herald - subscription required)

Meanwhile, Ibrox manager Pedro Caixinha insists he is not worried by the £30m Celtic are likely to make from Champions League participation. (Daily Record)

Hibernian head coach Neil Lennon says Caixinha should have shown him more respect following Hibs' 3-2 win at Ibrox on Saturday, explaining: "I went into the office after the game. There was no conversation with myself or my backroom team." (Daily Mail)

Caixinha and Lennon watched their sides play out an eventful match at Ibrox

And Lennon feels the fall-out from his goal celebrations in Glasgow have wrongly overshadowed Hibs' win over Rangers. (Scotsman)

Motherwell assistant manager Keith Lasley has backed the idea of closing the transfer window before the Scottish season begins. (Herald - subscription required)

Hearts interim head coach Jon Daly hopes Ibrox will bring out the best in winger and Rangers target Jamie Walker when the Tynecastle club visit Glasgow on Saturday. (Sun)

Partick Thistle manager Alan Archibald insists he is in the dark about potential interest in his services from Hearts. (Herald - subscription required)

RUGBY UNION GOSSIP

Edinburgh and Scotland forward Alasdair Dickinson has had surgery on his shoulder and is likely to be out until December, having been laid low with a foot injury late last season. (Evening Express)

And a back injury means Toulouse lock Richie Gray will miss Scotland's autumn Tests. (Scotsman)