Ex Celtic star Stiliyan Petrov has written off Aberdeen as serious Scottish Premiership title contenders – but warned his stuttering old rivals Rangers they should be afraid of EVERYONE.
Brendan Rodgers’ champions and the rampant Reds are neck and neck at the top of the table as domestic action prepares to resume after the international break. Jimmy Thelin’s Dons can claim top spot outright with a win at St Mirren before the Hoops face a trip to Hearts a few hours later on Saturday night.
Aberdeen earned a battling 2-2 draw at Parkhead in October but were thrashed 6-0 when the sides met in the Premier Sports Cup final. Rangers, meanwhile, are nine points behind the top two and host Dundee United at Ibrox. Asked by gambling.com if Aberdeen are a genuine title threat to Celtic, the Bulgarian said: “No. What are you talking about? Of course not.
“In the first league game I think that Celtic felt a little bit surprised with the way that Aberdeen were set up, their aggressiveness and the speed of their play.
“Celtic were a little bit caught off guard, but after that they felt the pressure and that someone [Aberdeen] was breathing down their necks. Then you saw what happened in the cup game. They concentrated, put in a great performance and this is what Celtic is all about. As soon as they feel that somebody is getting close to them, they just go to the next gear and when that happens Celtic are untouchable.”
But on Rangers who have wobbled this season, Petrov said: “Rangers have to worry about everyone at the moment, it seems like. Aberdeen are showing consistency. I don’t know how much depth they’ve got in the team and how long they can go on this run, because to stay in those positions you have to be able to sustain form and good results for a long period of time.
“And Celtic and Rangers have been there for many, many years – so they know how to deal with the pressure. It’s something new for Aberdeen, but they’re definitely showing Celtic and Rangers can be pushed from the outside.”