BRENDAN RODGERS paid a fulsome tribute to St Mirren by saying they are the best Scottish team the Hoops have faced this season.
The Championship outfit gave the champions a scare at Parkhead after Harry Davis struck on 13 minutes to stun the home crowd in the Scottish Cup quarter-final at Parkhead this afternoon.
And early in the second-half the Paisley side could have doubled their lead when Moussa Dembele sliced a clearance onto his own crossbar.
But goals from Mikael Lustig, Scott Sinclair, Dembele and Leigh Griffiths ensured the Hoops’ treble hopes remain alive.
Rodgers said: “St Mirren are the best team that we’ve played domestically and that’s including the Premiership.
“I know they’re at the bottom of the Championship. I know Jack Ross has gone in there and he’s done a fantastic job. You can see that in the team.
“They’re very well coached, very well organised, got good mobility, good speed and they can cause you a problem.
“And at 1-0, we didn’t play so well first-half. We were a bit slow in our tempo.
“But second-half I thought we were outstanding.”
The Hoops gaffer continued: “It was a very tough game for us.
“But I think what was good for me today was to see the team under pressure.
“It’s a nice test for the players. We haven’t too many games where we are behind, especially at home.
“It’s also good for the crowd because the crowd have to understand how we’re working.”
The Bhoys now just need five wins to claim the domestic treble – three wins in the Premiership and two in the Scottish Cup – but Rodgers is still keen to play down the team’s ambitions.
The manager added: “We haven’t really thought too much about it.
“It really is very much about a game at a time. The players deserve a huge amount of credit. How they’ve been focused, how they’ve been working.
“We’ll recover now, we’ve got a good week to prepare and then we’re here again for a very important game against Rangers (sic).
“So, we’ll just look to the next game and get ready for that.”
