Brendan Rodgers has urged Celtic to show “class and humility” against Rangers and give them a guard of honour.
The pair meet at Celtic Park this Sunday for the first time Steven Gerrard’s side wrestled the Scottish Premiership title out of their rivals’ hands, and the debate has ranged over whether the Hoops will clap them onto the pitch or not.
Rodgers, who played a massive part in getting Celtic to the nine titles they’d won in a row before this season, believes it’s something his former club should do, and cited an example from his own career that shows the rivalry isn’t too big to show respect.
He told Sky Sports: “My feeling is always that you should show humility and class and be a sporting team.
“I can never forget when I was at Chelsea as a young coach and that first season when Jose was in and we won the title.
“I remember going to Old Trafford to watch the game that evening and I’m sure the Man United players didn’t want to do it. But I’m sure Fergie insisted on it. That must’ve been really, really difficult.
“But it showed you the class of Sir Alex and the humility of him. Another competitor came in and took the title but it was also sporting that they did that and can provide great motivation going forward.
“So it's something that for me, despite the rivalry, despite how difficult it is, it’s something that you should do and use as a motivation going forward.”
As a Celtic fan, Rodgers didn’t enjoy his former captain Steven Gerrard finally ending the ten-in-a-row dream, but praised the Gers board for sticking by him for long enough to make it happen.
He added: “Stevie’s done an excellent job. They’ve been the most consistent team from the very off.
“He’s gone in, stablisied the club and given them a way of playing. He’s had great support from the board.
"With the intensity of that Celtic-Rangers competition, the demands and the expectation, it’s huge.
“In that third year, he’s delivered what they wanted.
“As a Celtic supporter, it’s sad to see of course but from a Rangers perspective, they’ve been the most consistent team. They’ve shown a really high level of consistency to win the title, so they deserve it.
