ANGE POSTECOGLOU insists his Celtic players shouldn't require extra motivation for any game they play in.
The Hoops manager is preparing his squad to face Rangers tomorrow lunchtime in the first derby clash of the season.
The Scottish champions can extend their early lead at the top of the Premiership table to five-points with a win.
But Postecoglou insists he expects the same from his players every time they take to the field, no matter the opposition.
He told Sky Sports: "What we've got to do is make sure we've grown into the season.
"We obviously knew it was a bit of a different start for us, with one game a week, but I think our performances have been getting strong every week. That's what we're looking for tomorrow.
"Improvement in our performance, improvement in the way we do things and play our football to overcome whatever challenge we have tomorrow that gets you three points, and then move on to the next challenge.
"From out perspective, the incentive is just to keep performing at the levels we have and keep improving on them.
"I certainly don't see it as any more difficult. You understand the impact it has particularly on our supporters in these games, but all that is pretty much irrelevant if you don't play well.
"I've always laid stock in one thing, and that is you get out there and you play your football and try and be the best you can be. All this other stuff tends to take care of itself.
"If you need extra motivation tomorrow than you did on Wednesday night or that you may need on Tuesday night, then you're never going to be successful. Our motivation has to be the same every time we're out there.
"We understand the significance of it to our fans, we understand the significance of it in terms of the league, but that shouldn't mean that we're more motivated tomorrow than we were on Wednesday night and I haven't seen any evidence of that from the players.
"They treat every game with equal respect and an equal desire to be successful."
