Celtic star’s Premiership title claim will worry Rangers

Celtic were handed a huge blow in midweek as their European campaign came to an end, following a 5-1 aggregate defeat at the hands of Bodo/Glimt. It is safe to say that it was a disappointment for the Hoops, who many had considered as the favourites going into the tie against the Norwegian champions. But while a defeat is always a blow, there are some positives to take from it as well.

At the end of the day, the Premiership is Celtic’s main focus right now. They sit three points ahead of the Rangers at the moment but that is not a huge lead and can be overturned in a single game. There is also the Scottish Cup to think about as well.

Thus, the European exit does give Celtic a chance to concentrate more on the domestic competitions. That is a glass half-full way of viewing things.

Matt O’Riley seems to be looking at the positives as well despite the disappointment of being knocked out from the UEFA Europa Conference League. As reported by the Daily Record, the January signing said:

"“It will help us (being out of Europe) and that has to be the focus for us now.“We’ve got the league and the Scottish Cup to concentrate on. We want to win both of them and we feel like we can.“The mood is still good in the camp. We’re disappointed about Thursday night but it gives us more of a chance to focus on the league.“A lot of people outside, like the fans, won’t feel this is the end of the world because we can concentrate on the league and Scottish Cup.“The title is definitely there for us and it’s our intention to win it.”"

O’Riley’s Celtic title claim will be a worry for Rangers

Losing is never a good thing. But what Celtic can do right now is take some of the positives and move forward. In fact, that is the only thing that they can do.

There are still 11 league games to be played including a couple of Glasgow Derbies, and they must be the main focus of the Hoops.

The Rangers might have pulled off a big result in the Europa League and gotten past Borussia Dortmund, but then, it gives Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side at least two more games to be worried about. Thus, it could very possibly be a boost to Celtic’s title chances in the long run. Let’s see how things unfold.