Celtic

BBC Scotland chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your questions.

Joanne asked: Hi Tom, do you think we will ever see a time when Celtic and Rangers leave the Scottish Premiership to go to England? I would love to see Celtic given the opportunity to play bigger teams on a regular basis in order to grow and compete at the top table. Thank you.

Tom answered: Hi Joanne. Never say never, but I can't see it.

The English leagues don't want big beasts going down there and taking up two slots in the Premier League, which they would eventually do even if they entered in League Two and had to work their way up. Turkeys don’t tend to vote for Christmas.

The bitter truth is that Celtic, and Rangers, are not wanted down there.

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Celtic defender Liam Scales savoured the "amazing" experience of scoring his first international goal after helping secure a maiden Republic of Ireland victory for new head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson in Finland.

With the Irish trailing to Joel Pohjanpalo's opener in the Nations League meeting, Scales headed the second-half leveller before Robbie Brady struck the 88th-minute winner.

Celtic team-mate Adam Idah come off the bench 10 minutes from time before the dramatic conclusion as Scales got his first goal on his sixth cap.

"It's brilliant. It was a great feeling and the fans just make it that bit better," he told RTE.

"We’ve been due a win, especially away from home, and to win it like that was brilliant."

Scales, who has netted twice for Celtic this term, added: "I don’t get many, I’ve had a few this season already. In the last 10 or 15 games I have more than I had in the previous two seasons already.

"Hopefully I can chip in with a few more. It's always been top of the list for me, so to check it off is amazing. I'll reflect on it tonight and take it all in."

Celtic midfielder Reo Hatate has insisted he has no complaints about being dragged halfway around the world after being called up for Japan and not even making the bench for World Cup qualifiers against China and Bahrain last month. (Glasgow Times), external

Read Friday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

BBC Sport Scotland chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your questions.

Neil asked: How do Celtic hang on to their academy players? Ben Doak, Rocco Vata and Dnaiel Kelly all left Celtic as 16/17-year-olds and are now playing in the Championship for more money than Celtic could realistically offer players of that age with limited first-team experience. Good enough to play regularly for Celtic at that age? Or should they have bided their time?

Tom answered: Hi Neil. The other week Celtic annihilated St Johnstone. That was the perfect evening to throw in a youngster off the bench. The game was won, the points secured. Nothing to lose. But there weren't any youngsters on the bench.

If they're not good enough then you have to question the work of the Celtic academy. But, really, there's not one young academy player good enough to come on against St Johnstone when it's 3-0, 4-0, 5-0? That seems mad to me.

Doak, Vata, Kelly - and many others - have left. Did they all go for the money? Or did they go, in part, because they feel they won't get a look-in in terms of the first team? Mitchel Frame had a nice cameo in the Champions League last season and hasn't been seen since. Francis Turley appeared against St Mirren but has had no minutes since.

Celtic are in a unique position in that they are going to win nearly all their domestic games, so they can afford to blood youngsters on certain days. They hardly ever do it, so these boys leave. It's okay for Brendan Rodgers to say young players need to be patient, but these players obviously don't believe they're going to get a chance.

I hear, from keen Celtic observers who know their stuff, there are good young players at the club. I just wish they’d get a chance to show if they're good enough.

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Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers is relishing a "really exciting" top-of-the-table meeting with Aberdeen.

With both sides boasting perfect winning starts in the Premiership after seven games, the pair collide in Glasgow when the top flight resumes after the international period.

Rodgers' men defeated Sligo Rovers 3-2 in a friendly on Wednesday night and will now break for a few days before preparing for the visit of the Dons, who have won all 13 of their competitive matches this season.

Although several of his players are currently on international duty, the Celtic boss is pleased that some of his squad will get a much-needed rest from a hectic schedule before the highly-anticipated encounter with Jimmy Thelin's in-form side.

"We'll have a bit of rest but then we're planning ahead for that really exciting first game back, so we're looking forward to that," Rodgers told Celtic TV.

"We'll have a couple of days to recover because it's been a long period of games, seven in 23 days, so we'll have a little bit of recovery time and then get everyone back in to prepare for the Aberdeen game."

On the win over Irish side Sligo, during which Luis Palma scored a hat-trick, Rodgers added: "It was excellent to come out to Ireland. Sligo were very good. It was a real good test, especially for some of our boys who haven't played for a little bit of time."

Rodgers also fielded several young players in the friendly but explained that they must work on their "physicality".

"They need to have more running power, they need to get in contention more," the manager said. "They have talent with the ball but that's nowhere near enough.

"That physicality allows them to play at a higher tempo. But it was nice for them to feel that and play in front of a crowd and play with the type of personality you need to play for Celtic."

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Midfielder Luke McCowan says working with "the best players in the country" has already raised his game as he settles in at Celtic.

The 26-year-old joined the Scottish champions from Dundee last month and insists he has been a "sponge" soaking up new information.

"As you can imagine anybody coming into a club this size, you think it's going to have daunts and scares or whatever, but it's not been," McCowan told Celtic TV.

"I've been very calm and been able to play a part in some great games so far and long may that continue.

"I want to show that I'm a good enough player, I know myself I'm a good enough player to be at a club this size, and it's about proving that now and working hard.

"Training every day with the best players in this country is the hardest bit of your week. Steel makes steel and it's making me a better player.

"The knowledge that the people are passing on to me about how to play this style of football has been amazing.

"It's been about taking that in and being a bit like a sponge and moving from there, it's been great."

Celtic are set to bring in former Exeter City manager Paul Tisdale, who describes himself as a "football doctor", to revamp the club’s football operations with head of recruitment Mark Lawwell and chief scout Joe Dudgeon having left the Scottish champions in March. (Daily Mail), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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Winger Luis Palma completed a late hat-trick to give Celtic a 3-2 win over League of Ireland side Sligo Rovers in a friendly match.

The Honduran scored at the back post in the 89th and 90th minute to complete the comeback for the Scottish Premiership leaders having also finished from a cross to open the scoring early on.

Sligo had hit back to lead with two goals in four minutes from Kailin Barlow and Simon Power before Palma's late strikes earned Brendan Rodgers' side victory in Ireland.

The Celtic boss fielded an XI with a mix of youth and first-team fringe players including Scott Bain, Stephen Welsh, Maik Nawrocki, Alex Valle, Luke McCowan, Hyun-jun Yang, and Palma.

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Kheredine Idessane
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

There was a European scoreline that made me do a double take the other day.

No, not the seven-goal mauling Celtic suffered in the Westfalenstadion. While that was bad enough from the Scottish champions' point of view, Dortmund's next result was also a cause for concern.

The narrative coming out of Parkhead after one of their worst continental thrashings was that it's no surprise Celtic struggled against last year's Champions League runners-up. No need to throw the baby out with the bathwater after one bad day at the office. Fair enough, up to a point.

Until you dig a little deeper. Is this really the all-conquering, free-flowing Borussia side that ran Real Madrid so close for Europe's top prize last summer?

They've changed manager since then and it's a different squad too. Jadon Sancho, Marco Reus, Nicolas Fullkrug, Mats Hummels, all gone. Are they really at the level of last season's vintage?

Current domestic form would suggest otherwise, as evidenced by the result that caught my eye after they put Celtic to the sword: Union Berlin 2-1 Dortmund.

That loss leaves them seventh in the Bundesliga. Union were 2-0 up by half-time. Against Celtic, Dortmund scored five before the interval.

It all confirms something many observers were already feeling - the performance and approach from Brendan Rodgers' side made the Germans look significantly better than they currently are.

With Europa League winners Atalanta away from home looming large on Celtic's next European horizon, the Glasgow side will need to up their game considerably to avoid yet another humbling.

Rodgers will want Cameron Carter-Vickers and Greg Taylor, who both missed Sunday's win at Ross County, back in his defence for the upcoming Champions League trip to Italy.

You could argue the Celtic boss could also need his top team for the next domestic test. Carter-Vickers may well be available for the visit of Aberdeen. The word on the street is that Taylor will struggle to make it.

The Dons, of course, have matched Celtic point for pointso far and will travel to Parkhead fully believing they can win.

The stats suggest that's unlikely. Six years and 25 meetings between the two have elapsed since the last Dons victory. It came at Parkhead in May 2018 when Rodgers was in his first spell, Celtic had already won the title and were on their way to the double treble.

Rodgers' ruthless streak in Scotland shows now sign of letting up but it's in Europe where he really wants to make a mark.

It was dismal in Dortmund so - with a rejuvenated Aberdeen as the warm-up act - he now has some time to consider how best to avoid another bruising in Bergamo.

Both Celtic and Aberdeen have a 100% Premiership start. And both scored 88th-minute winners at the weekend to preserve that perfect record with comeback wins.

The Dons edged out Hearts in a five-goal stormer at Pittodrie, while Celtic avoided a European hangover by taking full points in Dingwall.

It sets things up nicely for the mouthwatering top-of-the-table showdown when the leading pair meet at Celtic Park a weekend on Saturday.

Celtic midfielder Luke McCowan insists Aberdeen cannot be considered title contenders yet, despite the Dons' perfect start to the Scottish Premiership season. (Daily Record, external)

Scott Brown says he probably should have retired as a player after leaving Celtic and focused on coaching, instead of joining Aberdeen. (Press and Journal - subscription required, external)

Read the rest of Wednesday's Scottish gossip.

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Young Boys have become Celtic's second Champions League opponents to sack their manager this season.

The Swiss champions have parted ways with Patrick Rahmen after just five months in charge.

The 55-year-old has presided over a terrible start to their title defence, with Young Boys bottom of the Swiss top flight having won just one of their opening nine matches.

Under-21 boss Joel Magnin has taken interim charge of the Swiss side, who make the trip to Parkhead on 22 January.

Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb, who host Celtic on 10 December, also dismissed their manager early in the campaign.

Sergei Jankovic was sacked following the 9-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in their Champions League opener. Nenad Bjelica has returned for a second spell in charge following a short stint at the helm of Union Berlin.

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Celtic winger Nicolas Kuhn is determined to make amends for Celtic's Champions League hammering in Dortmund after the defeat hit him hard because he was determined to shine in his homeland.

Kuhn continued his impressive early-season form with a late Premiership winner at Ross County on Sunday and is focused on helping Celtic make the most of their six remaining Champions League matches, starting with the trip to face Atalanta on 23 October.

"That was not our real face," Kuhn said of the 7-1 loss to Dortmund. "It was last year's finalist of the Champions League and if you're not 100% there, they're going to take advantage.

"We talked a lot about it, but now it's done and we're just going to focus on the next games. The start, except for that game, has been unbelievable.

"For me personally, it was really difficult. I wanted to have a good game there, but that's how it is now. I talked with the gaffer about it and he told me to just keep going, and that's what we did.

"We have another German team to play [RB Leipzig] and we will play at home, so we just have to do better.

"We have a lot of games to go and we want to do better. That's what we're going to work on every week. For a lot of the guys, and for me, it was only our second game in the Champions League."

Kuhn ran into the travelling support when he scored in the 88th minute in Dingwall, but he was not concerned about being dismisses having already been booked following a clash with Connor Randall.

"Not really, I think the first one was not deserved," he added. "But to be honest I didn't really think about it.

"To celebrate with them was amazing. I'm just happy that we got the three points at the end, because it was really important to go into the international break with a win."

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Brendan Rodgers says Celtic fans deserved to see a victory up at Dingwall on Sunday.

Following their midweek 7-1 hammering by Borussia Dortmund, the reigning champions trailed Ross County 1-0 at half-time.

Second-half goals from Alistair Johnston Nicolas Kuhn continued Celtic's winning start to the Premiership season.

"It's a Celtic tradition, isn't it? It’s how the game is played at this club," the manager said.

"Because if you look over the course of this week, we had thousands of fans turn up in Dortmund. They've seen what they've seen, which wasn't great, but they give us great support at the end of the game.

"Now they're having to come up here for a 12 o'clock kick-off, so the very least you can do is run your heart out right to the very end.

"That's what this club's about. It's the fabric of this club. You keep going to the end."

Celtic fans, we asked for your thoughts after Sunday's narrow victory over Ross County.

Here's what some of you had to say:

Robert: Not up to standard but the boys did what they do and that's win.

Gordy: A hard fought win after a hard week in Europe, in the end it was the result that mattered and we got the victory we deserved. The subs made a difference but I felt for Adam Idah who was starved of service all day. We go into the break top of the league and can come back revitalised for the challenging games ahead.

Andy: A very poor performance but they dug out a victory when they could easily have lost, true champions.

Hugh: Teams often have a European hangover and given we have just returned from a confidence-sapping heavy defeat, we dug deep and, like champions, found a way to win. The international break will give us the opportunity to re-group and re-think our approach. Brendan Rodgers should look at how Ross County made things really difficult for us and use that as a blueprint.

Malcolm: We always carry a European hangover and to be honest Ross County did what we should have done against Borussia Dortmund and that's play cautious, frustrating football.

Patrick: Once again we managed to have the legs to snatch a win but it was close. Some quite negative play nearly caused us to drop points but Nicolas Kuhn stepped up as he has done so much this season.

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Celtic overcame a scare to beat Ross County in Dingwall on Sunday and have two players in my Team of the Week.

Alistair Johnston looked like he'd won a prize when the ball hit the net for Celtic's equaliser. Essentially he just cushioned the ball into the net off his thigh but they all count, and it was a huge moment for Celtic as they dug out three points.

I have been so impressed overall by Johnston this season. His drive, determination and attitude make such a difference at both ends of the pitch. He is a crucial component in the Celtic machine.

Nicolas Kuhn rose to the moment as he cut inside and fire home the winner to spark delirium amongst the travelling Celtic support. His pre-season was superb, and he has carried that form into the early weeks of the league campaign. The challenge for him now is to keep producing consistently and reach even higher levels.

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• Ross County have lost 7 points from winning positions in the Premiership this season, no team has lost more.

• Ross County have lost a home game after leading at half time in the Premiership for the first time since 17th December 2022 against St. Johnstone (10 games without defeat).

• Celtic have scored in their last 16 games in the Premiership, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of 27 games from 1st October 2022 to 7th May 2023.

• Celtic have won their last 13 games in the Premiership, their last longer winning streak was from 24th September 2016 to 1st March 2017, a run of 22 games.

Watch highlights of Celtic's Scottish Premiership win against Ross County.

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Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says Cameron Carter-Vickers will return to training this week and expressed hope the centre half will be available for the top-of-the-table meeting with Aberdeen on 19 October. (Herald), external

Ross County boss Don Cowie claims Celtic should never have been awarded a free-kick in the build-up to Nicolas Kuhn's late winner in Dingwall. (Football Scotland), external

"The rules must have changed," quipped Sky Sports pundit and ex-Rangers striker Kris Boyd as Nicolas Kuhn of Celtic avoided a second yellow card for joining the crowd in his goal celebrations. (Football Scotland), external

Responding to Boyd's comments, former referee Bobby Madden used social media to point out such action was "removed as mandatory caution over a decade ago", while sharing clips of similar celebrations. (Daily Record), external

Read the rest of Monday's Scottish gossip.

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Celtic left it late, but they came from behind to bounce back from the drubbing in Dortmund with a win against Ross County in Dingwall.

Alistair Johnston and Nicolas Kuhn provided the goods for Brendan Rodgers side' who maintain their 100% start to the season.

Whether you were up in the Highlands or watching the game elsewhere, we want to hear from you.

Give us your thoughts on the game here., external