ERIK SVIATCHENKO has admitted Celtic should give up the game if they don’t win the Premiership this season!
The Hoops are a massive 27 points clear in their relentless pursuit of a sixth successive crown and have yet to lose a domestic game in 30 outings.
But the Danish international defender warned the rest of Scottish football Brendan Rodgers and his team-mates are using the rest of the league term as preparation for next season’s Champions League campaign.
Sviatchenko said: “I never get tired of winning. Although we have had a lot of winning games, we have had to work hard for them and, regardless of what people think, they don’t happen by themselves.
“We are the favourites in every game, but it can be hard. For example, St Johnstone were 2-1 up on us the other week.
“We have to keep going at the highest level if we want to continue our winning streak.
“There are plenty of other leagues in Europe where there has been a big difference between the league leaders and the rest.
“That’s certainly been true in Spain and France in the past and also Denmark right now.
“Here in Scotland, our opponents play aggressive football and are good at organising themselves against us.
“There are no matches that are a walkover – often we just win by one goal.
“We are a flagship for Scottish football at the moment, but teams like Rangers (sic), Aberdeen and Hearts make it a good league as well and it is exciting to be part of it for me.
“We have respect for our opponents – although we should all probably stop playing football if we don’t win the championship this season!
“But there are plenty of other goals we are striving for. We have already overtaken the unbeaten record of the Lisbon Lions from 50 years ago and we want to create a record no=one can ever beat.
“And our preparations for the Champions League for next season started the day we were knocked out this year’s competition.
“We have a project in the Champions League for four or five years. It’s a natural part of being a big club to do well in that.”
