Rodgers won’t stand for complacency as his Celtic team go into Scottish Cup final as favourites

Brendan Rodgers insists Celtic will never be tempted to take victory over Rangers for granted.

The newly crowned Premier League champions go into Saturday’s Scottish Cup final as bookmakers’ favorites and will end the season unbeaten in five meetings with their bitter rivals.

A win for Celtic would also take the club’s trophy tally to 118 apiece.

With last weekend’s title celebrations over, Rodgers has told his players to regain their focus and get their heads back on track.

He played down the suggestion of a Celtic stranglehold on Philippe Clement’s side, saying: ‘No, you can never have that arrogance. It’s not how we work. We are humble in the way we work, we respect every opponent we play, whether they are Rangers, or Raith or whoever, we have to prepare for the game.

‘But we arrive at the match in ideal condition. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. We have been on fire in recent months and played very well.

The Celtic boss looks relaxed as he chats to his players in training

Rodgers has a brief word with James Forrest, who has been recalled to the Scotland squad

‘At the beginning of the season there were a lot of challenges for us: we were playing every three or four days, while missing some very important players.

“But I think over the course of the season, as the season has built up over the busy months, the players have been fantastic in the way they have dealt with that.

‘So we won the league in a very, very good way and played well. We arrive here in good condition.’

After a testing, challenging season – when his side were knocked out of the Viaplay Cup in August – the champions claimed their third title in a row by an eight-point margin.

Acknowledging that a league and cup double would be the icing on the cake, Rodgers challenged his players to cross the line one last time after the joy of lifting the Premiership trophy.

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“Last weekend we had a party, but it was also a work day for us,” he added. “We wanted to win the game, which was brilliant and the weekend for Celtic was good overall, with the women’s team also winning the league.

‘But as I said to the players at the beginning of this week: “You have had that relaxation, now it is time to concentrate”.

‘We have to do the work – the focus, the work and the intensity have been at the highest level. So focus is the right word.’