Celtic won the bragging rights of Glasgow once again when they beat Rangers in the Scottish Cup final on Saturday.
The Gers suffered a 1-0 defeat after a 90th-minute winner from Adam Idah, with the Ibrox club now losing for a fourth time this season to Celtic.
Michael Beale and Philippe Clement have been in the dugout for those matches, respectively, as Rangers couldn’t overcome the might of Brendan Rodgers upon his return to the club this season. Celtic had won the Treble under Ange Postecoglou and Rodgers, to the surprise of some, returned to win the title again and added the Scottish Cup to the cabinet also. There have been many great performances from Celtic players against Rangers this season, from Hampden to Parkhead.
But one man James McFadden was keen to highlight was Daizen Maeda and the issues he causes in the Glasgow derby.
Just go back to his brilliant opening goal inside the first minute at Ibrox during that 3-3 epic! The former Scotland midfielder thinks James Tavernier is scared of the Celtic winger because he ’spooks’ him ‘every time they play’, as he told BBC Sport.
From Postecoglou to Rodgers, they like to play Maeda on Tavernier’s side because they know his attacking threat.
But the sheer work-rate, aggression, precision, speed and intelligence the Japan star plays with is just too hot to handle for the Rangers skipper.
Daizen Maeda v James Tavernier“Every time they play, Maeda spooks Tavernier,” said McFadden. “There’s question marks over Tavernier defensively.
That’s because he’s so good going forward. I don’t think he’s a bad defender, but Maeda has his number.
Celtic and Rangers next season No one is going to argue, Celtic have had their issues this season. Many still remember chants of ‘sack the board’ during the defeat to Hearts over the winter.
From recruitment issues to Rodgers trying to get used to this squad. They have shot themselves in the foot on a number of occasions.
But when it mattered most, they stepped up, won the big games and won the trophies that matter.
It doesn’t bode well for Rangers next season because you feel Celtic will go to another level and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they don’t win the title much easier.
