Brendan Rodgers: We know we need to play better | OneFootball

It was the proverbial game of two halves at Celtic Park on Sunday, with the Hoops conceding two first-half goals to their city rivals before drawing level in the second-half.

And while it looked as though Brendan Rodgers’ side were the more likely to go on and score a third goal, the visitors capitalised on a defensive slip to score late on and ultimately take all three points with a 3-2 victory.

Speaking to Celtic TV after the game, the Celtic manager said: “It was a disappointing result. It’s never nice to lose these games.

“In the first-half we went behind early, and that gave them a good feeling in the game.

“We had opportunities in the first-half but I don’t think we played well enough or had great control of the game. There were too many misplaced passes and just not aggressive enough in our game. In saying that, Jack Butland made some really good saves.

“We made a change at half-time, came out and got the early goal and then you could feel the energy in the stadium, and we were in a really good place.

“It was a fantastic goal, and then at 2-1 we have the impetus in the game, and when we got to 2-2, I felt there was only one team that was going to win the game.

“We had opportunities and Butland made some good saves again, but then sadly for us, Ali slips which is unfortunate, we missed the first header and all of a sudden the guy puts the ball in the top corner.

“So I felt that probably a draw – they were better in the first half and we were better in the second-half – but if you don’t defend well enough, that can happen.”

Celtic remain 13 points clear at the top of the Premiership table with eight matches remaining, while there is also a Scottish Cup semi-final to look forward to.

And while the focus is on securing the two remaining trophies up for grabs to make it a domestic treble, Brendan Rodgers knows his side will have to play better in their remaining fixtures.

“Firstly, the message to the supporters is, we apologies because we always want to win games here and against our big rivals, so, for them, it’s not a great feeling,” he said.

“In every facet of the game we have to be much better and if you’re going to be a champion this year, you’ve got to go and show that you’re a champion and you’ve got to earn it.”

“So there are eight games to go, with 13 points, but we’ve got a lot of big games to play.”