Brendan Rodgers unsure of Dons title chances but says expectation will be high

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers is unsure how much of a threat Aberdeen will pose over the course of the season but says Dons fans will expect their team to be challenging at the top.

Aberdeen visit Celtic Park on Saturday on a 13-match winning streak under Jimmy Thelin and Rodgers was quick to highlight the foundations put in place by assistant Peter Leven, who was unbeaten in his final nine league games as caretaker boss last term.

Celtic are in a similar vein of form with 18 consecutive domestic wins under their belt, including a penalty shoot-out triumph against Leven's side in the Scottish Cup semi-finals.

Aberdeen, under Derek McInnes, were Celtic's closest challengers during Rodgers' first spell in charge, but the Hoops boss feels it is too early to tell whether Thelin's side can last the pace.

"I don't know, is the honest answer. I don't know," he said. "It's only seven games in, but what I know is we play them (on Saturday) and this will be the first chance. So I'll get a close-up look to see where they're at, and then obviously we play them in a semi-final of the (Premier Sports) Cup.

"The first time I was here, Derek had done a fantastic job with Aberdeen, made them really competitive and they were always up there challenging.

"And Aberdeen's a big club, we can't forget that. It's a big club, so the expectation is to be up there challenging and fighting with the likes of ourselves.

"But it's all about time. There's such a long, long way to go in the season. It's how you deal with the bumps in the road as well, which will always determine where you finish and how you end up."

Rodgers has been impressed with Thelin's style of play.

"They look to have real clarity in how they play, both with the ball and against the ball," he said. "You win seven straight games in your league, then you've done really, really well.

"I see them as well-organised, want to build the game from behind when they can, want to play through the field, and they've got players at the top end of the pitch that can cause you a problem. And then without the ball, they play the shape well, defend in 4-4-2.

"Clearly, Jimmy's a very good coach. He's got good coaches around him as well, and they've started the season on a real high.

"And listen, I've got to say, at the end of the (last) season when we played, I thought Peter had done an excellent job with the team in that short spell he was in."

Celtic are unbeaten in 25 games against Aberdeen going back to a 1-0 home defeat on the final day of the 2017-18 season during Rodgers' first reign.

But the timing of the game could potentially work in Aberdeen's favour given Celtic have had the bulk of their squad on international duty. The champions took until the 89th minute to finally see off bottom club Hearts in a 2-0 home win immediately after the September international break.

Rodgers said: "What I always know is it's never going to be perfect, but you've just got to get to work and it will correct itself.

"You know, guys like Auston Trusty are just back training for the first time. So, it's always a challenge, of course, when players go away and they play in different styles and different systems and then you're trying to recalibrate it all back again when it comes back. But that's the job."

Celtic will still be without Greg Taylor against the Dons and Atalanta next Wednesday but Cameron Carter-Vickers has a chance of returning from a toe injury with the medical team waiting to assess his reaction to Friday's training session.

Rodgers said: "What we're conscious with Cam is he had a wee bit last season where he was in and out, even though it's a totally different injury this time.

"It's one where, we were told at the time, it could have been anywhere between two and three months. But we're just not wanting to push him back in too early, which might then set him back."

--

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.