Brendan Rodgers tells Celtic snipers 'we're not robots' but one thing about Rangers defeat REALLY stings
Brendan Rodgers says his Celtic players aren't robots - but he's not letting them off lightly after being bossed by Rangers.
Rodgers was helpless on the touchline has his side went down 3-0 to their rivals to cut their gap at the top of the division to 11 points. It's a long way from blowing the title race back open, but a first defeat of the season was a reminder to Celtic there is plenty of work yet to be done in their quest to win a fifth Premiership crown on the spin. Goals from Ianis Hagi, Robin Propper and Danilo were the difference at Ibrox. And while a gutted Rodgers wasn't minded to go through his players after a stunning first half of the season, he says their lack of intensity let them down.
"Very disappointed with both the performance and result. The best team won. They had an edge in the game that we never had. We made too many mistakes. I said before the game it wouldn't matter if we were 50 points clear - Celtic vs Rangers is everything. But we never played with that edge and that personality.
"This is a little reminder of what it takes to win a game. We didn't control the midfield. Too many slack passes...we gave the ball away too easily. It's one of the games you have to look at. It's not nice but we have to analysis it and do better.
"It wasn't a very good performance. We made too many mistakes, especially in the first half on the ball. That invited pressure. We trapped ourselves in too many areas.
"From that, 1-0, it gives the stadium a lift. Rangers were the better team today. It was very unlike us. We were not aggressive enough without the ball. Too many duels lost and moments where they could then break out of pressure. On the ball, it was far too slow.
"The game is a disappointment. I'm not sure if the 14-point gap took the edge off, it shouldn't, but maybe subconsciously it can do. We did not play well and Rangers deserved to win.
"It was one of those days. They are not robots. The energy in the stadium, they wanted to prove a point, they hadn't beaten us and they are so far behind in the league, so there are many reasons why."
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