WATCH: Mulgrew - 'Crusaders are a very different beast this season'
Linfield captain guests on Cool FM's BetMcLean Football Show
Last updated 8th Mar 2018
Linfield captain, Jamie Mulgrew, is backing Crusaders to continue their dominance and win the Danske Bank Premiership.
He says there will not be a repeat of the Crues’ collapse last season which saw them blow a nine-point lead.
It ended with Mulgrew lifting the Gibson Cup.
The Blues skipper says that if anything Crusaders are even better this year
Speaking on our latest BetMcLean Football Show which is now available to view in full on Cool FM’s Facebook Page (see below), Mulgrew said.
"I'd be very surprised if they did it two years in a row. I would say this year they're a different beast. I think what happened to them last year has made them a better team.
"I don't think a team like Crusaders with a manager like Stephen Baxter could have the same thing happen twice. But it's football, it's a funny old game."
Mulgrew says the best Linfield can hope for in the league is third place, currently occupied by Glenavon.
"We're in that position in the league for a reason,” he told us.
“The table doesn't lie. At this moment our season rests upon the Irish Cup. For us now in the league, it's third place, that's the most realistic chance we have."
Mulgrew says he is completely behind Linfield manager David Healy.
"I've said all along, David Healy is the right man for the job, there's no question about that,” he said.
“You hear all sorts of rumours going about that because you're not doing well as a team that he's lost the dressing room. That's rumour. That's nonsense. As players, we have let him down and let the supporters down, we've let the club down."
On the surprise impact of Coleraine shaking up title race, Mulgrew said: "They've been fantastic this year. I don't think anyone expected them to do so well. What happened to them in the Irish Cup final last year has probably spurred them on and made them into a better team.