Celtic striker Ryan Christie expects the Ladbrokes Premier League to be significantly more than a two-horse race next term.
Speaking as the fixtures for 2016-17 were unveiled, the forward shrugged off the suggestion that it could be a league table of old next season with the expectation being that Celtic and Rangers will muscle out any other challengers for the title.
And Christie has pointed to a quiet threat from Aberdeen and Tynecastle – where Celtic open the defence of the title – as to where the runners may come from.
Asked if he expected Rangers to challenge Celtic for the Championship, Christie said: “I don’t know. You look at Hearts - they did very well when they came up last season. It’s hard to compare with Rangers, who came up from the Championship which they kind of cruised last season. But it’s not just us Rangers are going to have to deal with. It’s Aberdeen and Hearts as well.”
Rangers have added Joey Barton to the mix this summer, with the 33-year-old spending this week on the back pages every time he has opened his mouth. Barton has proved to be good value for the football writers’ so far, but Christie has been reluctant to take any of the barbs too seriously.
“I hadn’t seen it but I’ve been told,” he smiled. “I know for sure that it won’t faze Broony. I’m sure Joey Barton is going to play it up a bit. I’m sure we’ll have our laughs and jokes with Broony about it and there might be a bit more of it to come.
“I’m looking forward to playing against him. He’s a player who gets a lot of attention, so that can only be good for the league. There’s no bones about it. He’s not going to come up here and have an easy time because it’s not an easy league. He’s a good signing for Rangers but we are focused on what we want to do.”
Meanwhile, Christie is looking to impress new manager Brendan Rodgers when pre-season gets underway at Lennoxtown on Monday morning. The former Liverpool boss has already voiced his preference for a tight squad and although the Parkhead side have dispensed with Anthony Stokes and Carlton Cole, there is still a bloated look about their current squad which numbers around 30.
“I’ll have to play it by ear but obviously my aim is to stay at Celtic,” he said. “Not to be going anywhere. It’s the manager’s choice. Most of them like a tight-knit squad, so we’ll have to wait and see.
“I think we go in on Monday with everybody on level par when it comes to impressing the new manager. That’s the way you’ve got to think about it. Whoever impresses him the most in training will stick themselves in his thoughts and could be in the team throughout the season.”
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