BRENDAN RODGERS has told his Celtic players there can be no excuses if they fail to perform at Hampden this afternoon.
The Hoops boss goes into the Betfred League Cup semi-final against Comedy Club Sevco Rangers knowing the club have a poor recent record at the national stadium.
Last season they lost two semi-finals there – to Ross County in the League Cup and then to the Ibrox side in the Scottish Cup.
Rodgers insisted: “I’ve heard bits and pieces about it from various people since I’ve been up here.
“For us, there are no excuses. It’s a good pitch – it’s a good size, really big, which suits our game. The two sets of supporters will be passionate.
“You can make an excuse if you want. It’s not for me. It’s a game that both teams face at a neutral ground with a surface that suits our style of play, in terms of the pace in our team.
“I haven’t had a look at the pitch yet, but we’ve prepared and trained well.”
Rodgers is also refusing to get carried away with talk of a potential domestic Treble.
The Irishman added: “For myself and the group, it would mean a lot to win this. It was one of our goals to get to the Final, so we have to perform and earn the right to be there.
“We’ve ticked our goals off as we’ve gone along this season. This is something else that we’re hungry for and want to achieve.
“That’s a great stimulus for the players, coaches and myself – to have a chance of winning a trophy in November. It’s great, but we’ve got to be there.
“The Treble is something I’ve heard mentioned a lot around here, but, for me, it’s just about the next game and getting to that Cup Final.”
