Scottish Premiership

RANGERS made it back-to-back wins at Celtic Park for the first time since 1995.
Connor Goldson was the surprise hero as the central defender popped up with both goals to seal the huge win for Steven Gerrard’s side.

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Rangers goal hero Connor GoldsonCredit: Getty Images – Getty

Rangers now move four points clear of their city rivals at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.
No titles are won in October, but it’s a massive morale boosting victory for the Ibrox outfit.
The Light Blues were comfortable from start to finish and were without doubt deserved winners in the first Old Firm of the season.
They controlled possession, put together neat passages of play and generally outplayed their hosts.

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The defender pokes the second of the match homeCredit: Reuters

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The Gers team celebrateCredit: Reuters
Neil Lennon was of course without a number of key players due to coronavirus and injury, with the pick of the bunch Odsonne Edouard, Christopher Jullien, Ryan Christie and James Forrest.
Celtic were forced to hand debuts to young Stephen Welsh and new left back Diego Laxalt.
But truth be told, Rangers had their opponents’ number all afternoon.

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Neil Lennon thinking on the touchlineCredit: PA:Press Association

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Goldson with the header in the first halfCredit: Reuters

Connor Goldson gave the Gers an early lead with a glancing header on nine minutes after a sensational delivery from James Tavernier with a free kick wide on the right.

This sparked wild celebrations from both the Light Blues players as well as the away dugout.
Mohamed Elyounoussi should’ve levelled matters moments later for Celtic after outmuscling Goldson off the ball, but he mistimed his lob and the ball sailed over the bar.
The remainder of the first half was fairly uneventful, although Alfredo Morelos could count himself lucky not to find himself in the book after a series of stupid niggly fouls on Scott Brown and Shane Duffy.
But on 54 minutes Goldson popped up again.
Tavernier whipped in another wicked cross, this time in open play.

Goldson’s first effort was blocked by Duffy, but the ball dropped kindly for the Englishman to tap home what was a scrappy second goal – not that any Gers fan will care.
Ryan Kent had a huge chance to make it three, but his first time shot was well saved by Hoops keeper Barkas.
Leigh Griffiths, Albian Ajeti and David Turnbull were all thrown on in the hope of inching Celtic back into the game, but their all round play was too lax, sloppy and slow to merit anything out of the match – with ZERO attempts on target.

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ARSENAL are poised to confirm they’ve successfully negotiated for Kieran Tierney to cut short his 14-day isolation period and be available for tomorrow night’s game against Manchester City at the Etihad.
The news will be a huge boost to Mikel Arteta ahead of the clash against his old side.

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Kieran Tierney in action for ArsenalCredit: AP:Associated Press

Arteta looked set to start Rob Holding, David Luiz and Gabriel in the heart of the defence with Hector Bellerin and Ainsley Maitland-Niles as wing backs.
But that looks set to change now Tierney is available.
The news will immediately spark a demand from Celtic for answers and a similar result for Ryan Christie ahead of the first Old Firm derby of the season.
SunSport revealed today the Hoops were ready to fight for their player.

Both Tierney and Christie were told to self isolate for two weeks from October 6 when they were deemed close contacts of the Covid-19 positive tested Southampton’s Stuart Armstrong while the trio were together at the Scotland camp at the Oriam.
The Gunners and Celtic each released statements expressing unhappiness over the decision made by the Lothian Health Protection Team, stressing that their players had ensured social distancing.
Both clubs also made it clear they would be pursuing the matter – with the Hoops realising immediately Christie would not only miss three Scotland games but also the Rangers showdown.

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Ryan Christie in action for CelticCredit: SNS Group
Now, with Arsenal’s doctor Gary O’Driscoll having had productive talks with the Lothian Health Protection Team, Scottish government and the SFA, it looks likely that boss Mikel Arteta will have £25 million ex-Celt Tierney available for tomorrow.

Celtic won’t take that news lightly.
STANDING FIRM Celtic vs Rangers: Sky Sports reject Nicola Sturgeon’s plea to broadcast Old Firm game for free
And they will expect the same outcome for Christie, with boss Neil Lennon already deprived of Nir Bitton and Hatem Abd Elhamed due to the virus while Odsonne Edouard,nwho tested positive in France, is scheduled to jet back to Glasgow tonight or the early hours of tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports has rejected Nicola Sturgeon’s plea to broadcast this weekend’s Old Firm game for free.

The First Minister had ‘strongly endorsed’ calls for the freebie viewing to reduce the risk of fans gathering in each other’s homes to watch it.
Current coronavirus restrictions mean supporters can’t be at Parkhead, in pubs or at each other’s homes to watch Celtic take on Rangers on Saturday.
But Sky Sports has knocked back the request after investing more than £125m in Scottish football.

Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page

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CELTIC ace Nir Bitton has tested positive for coronavirus while on international duty, ruling him OUT of the derby with Rangers next Saturday.
The Hoops have confirmed the utility man has returned a positive test while playing for Israel – with the club now facing a Covid-19 crisis.

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Nir Bitton has tested positive for coronavirus and could miss Celtic’s game with RangersCredit: Kenny Ramsay – The Sun Glasgow

The defender starred in his side’s play-off loss to Scotland on Thursday night.
He will now go into a period of self isolation meaning he will miss next week’s Old Firm derby.
The 28-year-old will now join fellow Hoops ace Ryan Christie in missing out on the crunch match with Rangers due to Covid-19 related incidents.
Odsonne Edouard is also a huge doubt as he self-isolates in France after picking up the illness on Under-21 duty.

Celtic announced the news in a statement on their official club website.
While the Parkhead side ‘apportion no blame to any party’, Hoops bosses admit this is a difficult position for the club and Scottish football.
The club have also confirmed that ALL players who continue to train at Lennoxtown during the international break have returned negative tests.
The statement reads: “Celtic Football Club can confirm that Nir Bitton has returned a positive Covid-19 test yesterday while on international duty.

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Bitton looks set to miss Celtic’s Old Firm derby clash with RangersCredit: Kenny Ramsay – The Sun Glasgow

“We send our sincere best wishes to Nir and any other players or staff affected within the Israel squad.
“We are in constant dialogue with Nir and look forward to him returning safely to the Celtic squad as soon as possible.
“Clearly, recent events during this international period are very concerning and frustrating.
“We have worked tirelessly to ensure a safe and secure working environment and since testing has begun our players and medical staff have done a brilliant job in very difficult circumstances.
“Although we will never be complacent, throughout our own club testing programme, our squad has returned around 2,000 individual negative tests since the outbreak of the pandemic, with not one positive test.
“The current situation has presented huge challenges for all within football and wider society which we do not underestimate in any way.
“While we apportion no blame whatsoever to anyone, this is now a very difficult position for us and, clearly, for all other clubs.
“Like all other clubs, we must do all we can to protect our squad and limit the very clear and obvious risks to players.
“Under Fifa regulations, clubs are obliged to release players for international duty.
“We will be maintaining close contact with international associations in order to ensure everything possible is being done with regards to the care and protection of our players.
“The priority must be the safety of our players at all times.
“For clarification, all members of the Celtic squad who continue to train at Lennoxtown during this period have again ALL returned negative tests yesterday.”
Bitton’s international and club team-mate Hatem Elhamed tested negative after the game and there are no concerns he’s been at risk.

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SCOTLAND are one step closer towards qualifying for a major tournament for the first time since 1998.
It was far from pretty or convincing, but the Tartan Army have set up a date with destiny against Serbia next month after beating Israel.

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The Scotland players celebrate after reaching the Euro playoffs finalCredit: Getty Images – Getty

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Scotland won their first-ever penalty shootout after a stalemate against IsraelCredit: Reuters

The nervy Uefa Nations League play-off semi-final went the distance all the way to penalties after a dour 120-minutes.
And it was Norwich ace Kenny McLean who scored the winning penalty.
The Scots scored all their pens, with the away side only scoring three.
Steve Clarke’s side lined up with two up front for the first time, with Oli McBurnie coming in to partner Lyndon Dykes.

But the two simply failed to strike up an effective relationship and the attacking move proved to have little impact on the match.
Scotland huffed and puffed for much of the cagey affair. Clear-cut chances were few and far between for both sides, though.
Manchester United ace Scott McTominay really ought to have scored in the first half though after missing a sitter.

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Manager Steve Clarke will now prepare his side to take on Serbia as they eye a first major finals since 1998Credit: Reuters

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Lawrence Shankland scored from the spot as Scotland netted five from fiveCredit: PA:Press Association
A cross from a corner on the right came into the box – but the unmarked midfielder failed to find the target and flashed wide.

As the game wore on, it looked as though the Scots would look to regret that guilt-edge chance.
The pace of the play was laboured from both teams, with not a lot of quality on show considering the level of players on the pitch.
That was highlighted further when the referee blew the whistle on regular time and the game crawled into 30 additional minutes.
Weissman missed sitter for the away side too with a little over five minutes of the contest remaining, letting Scotland off big time.

Cooper then dramatically hit the post with a header from an Andy Robertson corner in the last few seconds of extra time.
The game had to be decided by spot kicks, with nothing else left to separate the teams.
Manager Steve Clarke will certainly be breathing a huge sigh of relief.

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RANGERS ace Alfredo Morelos could yet leave Ibrox with Qatari side Al Duhail reportedly considering a fresh move for the striker – amid claims it could even ‘fast-track’ him to PSG.
Gers fans were able to breathe a sigh of relief when the transfer window slammed shut on Monday with Morelos still at Ibrox.

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Rangers ace Morelos is reportedly wanted by Qatari side Al DuhailCredit: Willie Vass – The Sun

Speculation had mounted over the Colombian all summer with a move to French side Lille looking increasingly likely.
But after a bid was rejected, the French side moved on and Morelos remained with the Light Blues.
However, the Daily Record now say Qatari outfit Al Duhail are considering a fresh move for the forward after previously expressing their interest in the summer.
And the Record even claims that due to strong links between Al Duhail and PSG it could open up a pathway for Morelos to eventually join the mega-rich French side.

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The forward remained at Ibrox after the European window slammed shutCredit: EPA
The transfer window remains open until October 25 in Qatar but Gers will be hesitant to let their star man go after standing firm.
The Doha outfit have already landed Mario Mandzukic, Medhi Benatia and Han Kwang-song from Juventus and have direct links with French giants PSG.
Morelos has previously suggested he would be against a move to the Middle East as he eyes Europe’s top five leagues.
It comes after Italian side Torino failed with a late deadline day loan bid.

The Serie A club made an offer to take Morelos to Italy for the season with the option to make the move permanent next summer.
Meanwhile, Benni McCarthy insists he had absolutely no hesitation recommending Bongani Zungu to Rangers.

Ibrox coach Michael Beale phoned the South African legend to get the lowdown on his fellow countryman.
Gers wanted to make sure every base was covered before concluding a deal for the midfielder.
And McCarthy was only too happy to tell them they would be signing one of the most complete midfielders in Europe.

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