LIAM Scales has insisted that Celtic will not fold under the pressure of Rangers’ title charge and predicted the Parkhead club can recover from their slump in form and retain the cinch Premiership trophy come May.

Scales and his team mates were booed off the park by their own supporters when they suffered a second consecutive league defeat for the first time in 10 years at home to Hearts last weekend.

Brendan Rodgers’ charges are now just two points ahead of their city rivals at the top of the table – and Philippe Clement’s men have a game in hand still to play.

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However, the Irish centre half is still confident that Celtic can put their difficult spell – they also lost to Kilmarnock at Rugby Park earlier this month - behind them and enjoy a successful 2023/24 campaign.

He is targeting a vastly improved performance and a win against bottom-placed Livingston in the East End of Glasgow tomorrow.  

“It’s definitely not a complete disaster,” he said. “It doesn’t mean the league is over because we have lost two games.

“It’s not good, it’s definitely not good. But there have been years where the same has happened and we have gone on to win it.

Celtic Way: “That is what we are really here to do – win the league. We know it can still be done, it is not a massive disaster. It’s a minor blip in the course of the season

“Ideally you don’t have a blip at all, but if one is going to come we have time and we have plenty of games to fix it.

“We are going to bounce back, we are not going away completely. We have had a couple of bad results, but we know if we win our games it is within our hands. That is it really. We are not going to just fold now.”

Meanwhile, Scales, who is out of contract at Celtic at the end of next season, has stressed that he is unconcerned that negotiations about an extension have not opened up yet.

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The Republic of Ireland internationalist admitted he would be keen to extend his stay at Parkhead last month and manager Rodgers stated that he would like to keep the defender beyond 2025.

“There hasn’t been any discussions,” he said. “I’m just focussed on the football at the moment. I’ve an agent to look after that and when the contact comes, he’ll let me know. 

“It’s not something I worry about. I’ll put it to the back of my mind and keep playing football. The team comes first. I’m just here to win games as a team. Performing well individually will help the team win and everyone is on the same page with that, but it’s about the team.”

Celtic Way: