Frank McAvennie reckons Saturday’s League Cup semi showdown with Aberdeen is Celtic’s final.
The former Hoops hero is sure whoever comes out on top will go on to lift the first silverware of the season. McAvennie says Jimmy Thelin’s Reds revolution at Pittodrie reminds him of the Alex Ferguson era when the Dons feared nobody and regularly travelled to Glasgow and won. And having seen them dump Rangers on Wednesday to march an incredible nine points clear of the Ibrox side at the top of the table with Celtic, he can’t wait to see the two league leaders go toe-to-toe in the semi final.
The 64-year-old also fancies Motherwell’s chances of an upset over Philippe Clement’s troubled Rangers side in Sunday’s other semi final. McAvennie won the league and Scottish Cup double with Celtic in 1988. And asked if this is his old side’s final, he said: “Yeah, I think so. Whoever wins on Saturday wins the cup. That’s what I think.
“I wouldn’t be too sure about Rangers beating Motherwell on Sunday either. Hampden is going to be heaving on Saturday, both sets of fans will be there in numbers and you saw how lively Pittodrie was the other night. It was absolutely bouncing.
“It’s set to be a fantastic game of football. This would have been a great final. Seeing Aberdeen against Rangers, they have a confidence about them and a never-say-die attitude. They are dangerous.
“It’s magnificent what Jimmy Thelin has done up there. He’s taking after Sir Alex. It reminds me of the Aberdeen side in the 80s. Back then they came to Glasgow and got results. They were on top.
“As a player when you walk into Parkhead you have to have a big pair just to actually play – whether that’s for Celtic or the opposition. To go there as a team and show the confidence Aberdeen did last month was a real statement.
“But playing Celtic at Hampden is a different animal to playing Rangers at Pittodrie. I’m sure Celtic will have learned from their last two meetings with Aberdeen and I think they’ll edge it. Celtic know they can score against Aberdeen, they were 2-0 up at Parkhead and I’m sure they took the foot off the gas.”
McAvennie reckons Rodgers has to go with Kyogo up front at Hampden – despite the Japan international only having one goal to his name from his last six appearances and missing two big chances against Dundee.
He said: “You have to go with the wee man. His runs are unbelievable. He is so quick, so intelligent. It’s been a long time since striker’s lived on the shoulder of defenders. He’s that man. Defenders hate running towards their own goal and Kyogo makes them do that. Naturally the manager will swap him and Adam Idah around as the season goes on. But for a game like this, it’s got to be Kyogo.”
Frank McAvennie was speaking at the launch of a partnership between Mr Singh’s India and PK Foods Glasgow Ltd to market the company’s popular chicken bhoona.
The dish is based on the family’s 30-year-old recipe and will be on sale at Costco. It is expected to sell close to 1,000 packs over the opening weekend.
Papa Singh, who opened the ‘world famous’ restaurant in Elderslie Street three decades ago, said: “We have built our reputation on providing fantastic Indian cuisine and warm and friendly Scottish hospitality. The new a la carte home dining will deliver a great value offering for both existing and new customers.”