Brendan Rodgers has made it clear that there’s no such thing as a meaningless Glasgow Derby, as his Celtic side prepare to face Rangers at Ibrox this Sunday.

Despite having already secured the Premiership title and Rangers having nothing left to play for, Rodgers insists the game remains of huge significance. The Hoops boss is determined to see his side bounce back from two derby defeats this season and lay down a marker ahead of the Scottish Cup final.

Chris Sutton has joked that Rangers are chasing a treble of their own – three Glasgow Derby wins in a row. Hopefully, Brendan Rodgers stands in the way of that.

“I hear the talk up here about meaningless games. There’s never that,” Rodgers told CeltsAreHere. “A Celtic-Rangers game, there’s never a meaningless game or there’s nothing in the game. There’s everything in this game, everything.

“So we have to go and prove that on the field.

“Yes, we are champions, the best team, the most consistent team with the mentality, Champions League progression, all of this here. But these are important games. So the message, no, our preparation has been really good.

“We had our little hiccup against St. Johnstone, from that you see the reaction, the players have been brilliant. I always think now at this stage of the season, we’ve set targets, we’ve set goals for the last five games and the cup final. We’re also preparing for next season.

“We’re trying to look to finish strong so we can prepare for that as well.”

Rodgers knows that a win at Ibrox, especially with 2,000 Celtic fans in attendance, would be the ideal way to cap off a dominant league campaign and set the tone for next season. It would also lift some negativity that has been surrounding Celtic throughout the Glasgow Derbies this season.

Brendan Rodgers has to show that he can make some changes in his side’s approach, beat the Rangers set up, and win the final meeting of the pair this season.

Then, full attention will go to winning the treble, with Aberdeen lying in wait at Hampden park.