“We got beat 5-1 so they have the bragging rights and deserved to win – but there’s no major gulf between us”.
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But there’ s no major gulf (between Rangers and Celtic).
Some thought Rangers’ Joey Barton had a game he would rather forget, particularly given his claim he could be the best player in Scotland when he signed this summer.
As for the bosses, Brendan Rodgers was enjoying his first taste of the derby while Mark Warburton had a very different experience as he made his bow at Celtic Park.
The Ibrox outfit had a chance to make a statement of intent on Saturday afternoon when they took on Celtic in the Old Firm derby. “It was something unbelievable and I will remember it all my life”.
‘The atmosphere and the crowd baying for blood in terms of having a player sent off, I was anxious for Niko, ‘ explained Warburton.
“I know the places he goes and the places I go probably differ with the tan and the teeth and that kind of thing”, the 34-year-old said about the Celtic manager.
The fact that the Scottish media has not picked up on it yet in their coverage is just temporary and I fully expect them to run with stories about this over the next day or so – who can blame them really?
“It was an outstanding team performance and a great day for the club”, he said. “But goals definitely change games and we’ve got to respect that, we’ve got to be better for today”.
Moussa Dembele grabbed two first-half goals before completing his hat trick after the interval.
“They were three great goals from a 20-year-old player”. The support from them was magnificent, but we don’t come here, or anywhere, and lose goals like that. “You can see he’s a big talent and hopefully he’s come to a club that can develop that talent”, the former Liverpool manager said.
Barton tweeted on Sunday morning for the first time since Rangers’ crushing defeat, and offered no excuses for the poor result or his own performance.
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Rodgers, who confirmed that Griffiths is out for the Champions League game against Barcelona in midweek, while skipper Scott Brown will be monitored after picking up a knock, said: “It is ironic. He showed his power, he showed his strength, showed his leadership qualities and of course I want that in every game”.
