BT Sport pundit Alan Stubbs has delivered his verdict on the gap between Celtic and Rangers, but named an area which give the Hoops an edge over their rivals.
He believes that Brendan Rodgers’ men still have the upper hand over their rivals due to the fact that they are able to close out games against the bigger sides – as demonstrated in their 3-0 win over Hearts on Sunday.
Stubbs claims that although the Gers are closing the gap steadily, the team looked a bit lost in their 1-0 defeat to Aberdeen on Sunday.
“Before the season started, everyone was saying that it was going to take two or three years for Rangers to get close to Celtic. So, it’s not going to happen overnight. They’ve made good strides,” he told BT Sport.
“On Sunday, you saw a difference between where both clubs are. You saw Celtic, who know how to win big games [beating Hearts 3-0], and you saw Rangers enter a big game for the first time under Steven’s stewardship.
“They were a little bit wondering at times. You know, they just didn’t get over the line.”
Does Scott Allan need to leave Celtic in January?
Stubbs: "He needs to be playing, wherever that is."
Craigan: "He's too good, we need him playing in our top league."https://t.co/VqfEgLiA14
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OPINION
Stubbs is right – the gap between the two sides is starting to be bridged by Rangers, but at a relatively steady pace. Like he pointed out, Celtic have an edge in the fact that they have the quality to close out bigger games compared to the Gers. They had a great chance of beating Aberdeen at the weekend – after all they do have the players to do so – but it seems like the occasion got to the team a little bit. Stubbs pointed out that they looked lost against the Dons, and he is absolutely spot on. They did not have the most shots on target, and they need to be doing a lot better if they want to challenge the Hoops in the future. However, Rangers are getting closer to Celtic by the day, and it will not be long before we see a tighter race for the league title in a few seasons’ time.