Celtic REFUSE to give Rangers a guard of honour before Old Firm clash

Celtic refused to give Rangers a guard of honour for winning the Scottish Premier League as the teams walked out of Sunday's Old Firm derby at Parkhead.

Steven Gerrard's unbeaten side are celebrating a first league title in a decade and sealed top spot on March 7.

But their fierce Glasgow rivals opted not to honour the achievement with a guard of honour ahead of Sunday lunchtime's clash even though Rangers lie 20 points ahead of Celtic.

It is customary - although not obligatory - for the champions to receive the tribute from their next league opponents after sealing the title, but interim Celtic boss John Kennedy revealed

Kennedy said in a press conference this week: 'We've spoken collectively about it and won't do it.

'It's not about lacking class - it's nothing like that, because we're a club who always show class and dignity and do what's right.'

Rangers refused to give Celtic a guard of honour back in May 2019 when the Bhoys won the 2018-19 league title and faced an Old Firm fixture after winning the top-flight.

Kennedy also highlighted that his side were not recognised for winning last season's Scottish Premier League trophy, which was decided via a points-per-game system as the 2019-20 campaign was curtailed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking about Rangers' refusal to give Celtic a guard of honour in May 2019, Kennedy added: 'I don't think such a fuss was made about it and I don't see it as a big issue.

'Ultimately this same group of players went in as champions and didn't get the respect at that time if you want to call it that.

'They're the same players who've been asked to stand there, so we've decided as a group we'll just focus on the game and put that to bed.'

Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers said earlier this week that former side Celtic should 'show humility' and give their fierce rivals a guard of honour.

Rodgers, who left Celtic for Leicester in 2019, told Sky Sports: 'My feeling is, you should always show humility and class and be a sporting team.

'So, it's something for me, despite the rivalry, despite how difficult it is, it's something you should do and use it as a motivation going forward.'

Both Glasgow rivals confirmed they would not be taking the knee ahead of Sunday's derby as well following the incident surrounding Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara against Slavia Prague last week.

Kamara insists he was called 'a monkey' by Slavia Prague's Ondrej Kudela during Thursday night's Europa League tie at Ibrox and Rangers are waiting for the verdict of UEFA's investigation.

Celtic captain Scott Brown interrupted his warm-up to publicly greet Kamara following the ordeal in midweek and lend his support to the Rangers midfielder.

Rangers go into Sunday's Old Firm looking to maintain their unbeaten top-flight season in their 33rd match of the campaign.

Gerrard's men have won 28 out of their 32 top-flight fixtures, while Celtic have lost four times this season.