‘A much better club’ - Feyenoord boss declares Celtic ‘different level’ from Rangers

Feyenoord head coach Arne Slot has warned his players that Celtic are a completely different proposition to Rangers ahead of tonight’s Champions League opener in Rotterdam.

The Dutch boss reckons the Hoops are a class above their Old Firm rivals - just weeks after the Gers crashed out of the competition after a humbling 7-3 aggregate play-off defeat to PSV Eindhoven saw Michael Beale’s side drop into the Europa League.

Now the reigning Eredivisie champions are bidding for a quickfire Champions League double against Scottish opposition when the two league winners clash at De Kuip Stadium this evening.

Many Dutch pundits are confident of a similar walkover for Feyenoord, but Slot insists there’s no comparison between Celtic and Rangers after declaring he has a unique respect for the Parkhead club.

When asked about PSV’s emphatic 5-1 second leg win over Rangers, Slot admitted: “PSV won easily at home, but they were unable to win away. Celtic have only lost to them (Rangers) once in the last six meetings and have been champions nine times in the last ten years.

“They have simply been a much better club than Rangers over the last ten years, although I will now tell the Rangers fans a bit of an insult. If you look at the performances, I think you have to assess them differently than Rangers.”

Slot also paid respect to former Hoops manager Ange Postecoglou for implement an attractive style of attacking play, something he insists Rodgers has managed to build since returning to the club earlier this summer.

He stated: “I admire them as a team, first of all because they play football, which I like to see. They did so last season as well under the former coach. Brendan Rodgers did a very good job at Leicester City, reached the semi-finals of the Conference League with football everybody enjoys watching.

“I think it is a very good team that plays in a structured way. Celtic has a lot of Asian influences and there are some dangers. They have a good fast striker (Kyogo Furuhashi), the left winger also stands out (Daizen Maeda).

“I also like their midfield. They play well and neatly. Postecoglou started that and Rodgers continues with it. Celtic are the only champions in the group besides us, you have to respect that.”

Slot, who was previously linked with the Tottenham Hotspur job before Postecoglou was appointed, added: “He implements the same playing style he did at Celtic – it was a joy to watch Celtic last season and this season it’s a joy to watch Tottenham at this moment.”