Jeff Stelling takes misguided dig at Celtic and Scottish football

Celtic will face Rangers in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden on May 25th, following a thrilling triumph over Aberdeen in the last four last weekend.

Serving up a feast of Entertainment, the Bhoys edged Peter Leven’s spirited Dons on penalties owing to some heroics from Joe Hart, who stooped low to deny Killian Phillips, ensuring the final match of his professional career will be a mouthwatering Glasgow Derby clash.

Intriguingly, it will be the first time the two sides have faced off in the Scottish Cup final since 2002, reversing the popular theory peddled by some that both halves of the divide meet on an abnormally frequent basis.

Of course, there is also now another layer to the Scottish Premiership title race, knowing that even once the league season is over, an additional meeting will now take place with summer bragging rights at stake.

Brendan Rodgers revealed post-match that Celtic are seeking to build momentum ahead of the showpiece occasion at the national stadium, as he stated on Saturday: “I’m just so happy for the players and the supporters that we’re coming back here on the 25th of May.

He later added: “We just have to block that out and look forward to five huge league games. We have to look to take the best possible form we can into that final.”

Jeff Stelling’s dig involving Celtic and the wider Scottish game

Speaking live on talkSPORT earlier today, Jeff Stelling didn’t hold back when assessing the weekend’s Scottish Cup action, claiming that Celtic and Rangers should play every week despite the reality that the pair haven’t faced each other in the comPetition’s final since 2002.

He stated: “Have they played each other a lot in the semi-finals? So, that’s why they’re not getting to the final because they’re knocking each other out before then.

“For God’s sake, every English Football fan will be thinking ‘Rangers against Celtic? There’s a surprise!’ Why don’t they just play each other every week? Forget the rest!”

Ally McCoist interjected to defend the Scottish game, simply adding: “Jeff, I have to inform you that we up here don’t give a monkey’s what every English football fan thinks.”

Scottish football takes its fair share of criticism, some warranted; regardless, it is a lazy argument to cite Celtic vs Rangers being played every week, as they have only actually met three times this season, with a five-month gap between the December and April fixtures for good measure.

Given our league structure is far less densely populated, the likelihood of the two being drawn against each other in cup competitions increases. However, this will be the first clash outside of league duty.

Yes, some feel improvements can be made to the design of Scottish Football, though no system is perfect, meaning that is something for another day.

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