Being Top Of The League Is A Really Good Feeling

A Word With The Manager

- Joe Donnelly

CELTIC capped off an impressive fortnight of games with a draw against Livingston on Sunday – a point which lifted the Scottish champions to the top of the SPFL table.

Brendan Rodgers’ side go into this weekend’s international break with a game in hand over second place Hearts, having scored 15 goals and conceded just one in their last five competitive games.

This includes a triumphant 3-0 win against Hearts at Murrayfield in the semi-final of the League Cup, a 5-0 demolition of Dundee at Den’s Park, another five-star performance against Hearts at home in the SPFL, and a dramatic 2-1 win over RB Leipzig in the UEFA Europa League.

That game saw the Hoops respond to a late equaliser with a wonderfully-worked goal just 14 seconds after the restart.

The goal-less encounter at the Tony Macaroni Arena was hard-fought, but the manager drew positives from the Hoops’ performance against a good side on a difficult playing surface.

“I thought it was a good game, and I enjoyed it,” Brendan Rodgers told the Celtic View. “Against Livingston, you really have to do the basics well. Livingston really test you with how they play through their throw-ins, deep free-kicks and corners. There are lots of balls you need to deal with in the box, and the players stood up to that really well.

“As the game goes on you look to create chances, and we started to do that. Their keeper, Liam Kelly, was Man of the Match, which probably tells you everything about the pressure and the saves that he made.

“Obviously, if you can’t get the win you’ve got to be strong defensively, and I thought the players took care of all the details of the game well.