Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes believes Brendan Rodgers has breathed new life into Celtic already but he is confident his side can stop the Hoops revival in its tracks tomorrow.
The Scottish champions have started the new campaign in strong fashion domestically and McInnes has been impressed by the Hoops’ displays under former Liverpool manager Rodgers so far.
It has been plain sailing for them so far but McInnes insists the challenge of trying to stop them is one his club, and the rest of Scottish football, should relish.
McInnes said: “I watched the first hour of the Celtic game at St Johnstone before our match against Partick Thistle and Celtic were terrific. They were really difficult to contain and it’s clear Brendan Rodgers has got them going again and they have got their mojo back.
“They’ll take some stopping but it is a challenge for us and every other team in Scottish football to try to do that.
“They are off to a flying start but it is up to everyone else to make it as difficult as we can for them as possible and we’re looking forward to that challenge.”
Due to their early-season European commitments Rodgers has opted for a settled starting 11, while the Aberdeen manager has altered his side to accommodate the midweek matches but, with the Dons’ Europa League campaign over for another year, McInnes hopes his team selection will be more consistent.
He said: “Good players take on board good information and there is a familiarity about their team from last season.
“Scott Sinclair and Kolo Toure have come in and there is a lot of players playing with a lot of confidence since Brendan arrived and put his stamp on the team.
“From our point of view we can only affect the games we play and it’s important we try to pick up as many points as possible as we can and we are looking forward to the trip to Celtic.
“We’ve played the freshest team rather than the best team due to the number of games we’ve played and there has been a lot of chopping and changing due to injuries to influential players like Ryan Jack and Jonny Hayes.
“We would much rather still be in Europe but now that we are out the one positive is that we are working Saturday to Saturday and that should give us time to rest and recover between matches.”