Celtic practice penalties ahead of Old Firm derby

Celtic were defeated in the semi-final by Rangers back in 2016, on penalty kicks, and although Rodgers was not manager at the time, he wants to be prepared for any potential outcome.

He told reporters: ''Penalties are something you can't discount, even though it's hard to recreate that situation. You can practice for it - walking up, putting it down and looking in the goal. Your heart won't be beating the same but you can still have the sensation of the penalty.''

He added: ''It's been a good week and we've covered for everything. We have looked at the last game and areas we can be better in. We've prepared the players mentally and then we polish them up before kick-off.''

Although the difference between the two sides' performances is evident, Rodgers understands that at some point, Rangers will get a result in their favour.

He said: ''Coming up here, I was used to playing a rival twice a season, at most three. We played Rangers six times last season. Aberdeen, too. It's all statistics, isn't it? It's hard to win them all but we have shown we can win in different ways.''

Rodgers faces a potential selection headache ahead of the weekend, with skipper Scott Brown as the only definite starter. The Celtic boss will welcome back several players from injury leaving his selection process that little bit more difficult.

 

15 April 2018