Former Celtic star Stiliyan Petrov has dismissed Rangers from the Scottish Premiership title race, insisting they aren’t worth discussing at this stage.
With the Light Blues sitting in third, five points behind Celtic, Petrov believes Aberdeen, who are level on points with Celtic but trail on goal difference, are the team to watch.
Speaking to gambling.com, Petrov, who won 10 major honours during his seven-year spell at Parkhead, made it clear that Rangers are no longer the main challengers to Celtic’s dominance.
“Rangers are way back, they’re third. Aberdeen at the moment is the team to talk about, not Rangers. They’re far from Celtic at the moment,” he said.
Petrov further emphasised that the gap between Celtic and the rest of the Premiership is significant, suggesting other teams are struggling to keep up with the Hoops’ high level of performance.
“I think all the teams in the Premiership are far from Celtic at the moment. It seems like with their performances and the way that Celtic are playing, that other managers and teams cannot find a solution.
“This is good for Celtic, but I don’t know how good this is for Scottish football. Because it seems like the clubs, and the managers, and the players, cannot find a solution to stop Celtic at the moment. And it will be interesting to see how those clubs will react,” Petrov added.
The former Bulgarian international also expressed a desire for his old club to make a move for Aberdeen goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov, who joined from St Johnstone in the summer.
“Mitov, who just signed for Aberdeen from St Johnstone, he’s put in some great performances. He’s a fellow countryman, a Bulgarian, so I’d maybe like to see another Bulgarian joining Celtic. We have failed to produce good players for many, many years, so seeing another Bulgarian could probably be interesting.”
Petrov is set to return to Aberdeen next month as part of the Celtic veterans squad competing in the Scottish Masters. He’s looking forward to renewing his rivalry with former Rangers midfielder Barry Ferguson.
He said: “I always look forward to coming across Barry Ferguson. He’s an exceptional player, he’s done really well for Rangers and Birmingham. Meeting him is always a great pleasure, but there are a few other players there too that I’m looking forward to playing against.”