"It is instructive that Thursday evening's Europa League clash in Bologna could be regarded by Celtic as an inconvenience. Aberdeen hold the Scottish Cup. St Mirren claimed the League Cup in December. Celtic find themselves involved in a title race worthy of the name. In short, domestic dominance is no longer a guarantee. Much has been said and screamed about the flow of poor decision-making that at least has Celtic's hitherto immovable position in Scotland under threat."
"It is instead worth focusing on the significance of the occasion as Celtic visit Tynecastle Park on Sunday. Tony Bloom promised disruption and tilts at glory when he formalised his involvement with Hearts last summer. In a matter of months, his prescience has been borne out. Hearts, the most consistent and therefore finest team in Scotland so far this season, have spent four of them atop the Premiership."
"Pressure is firmly on Celtic to eat into a gap which sits at six points before a ball is kicked in Edinburgh. It would be wrong to suggest Scottish football's broad audience would relish a Hearts title triumph followers of Hibernian understandably would not fancy that outcome very much but even the notion of the league flag flying outside Glasgow for the first time in more than 40 years has turned heads in far-off lands."
Celtic treat a Europa League trip to Bologna as an inconvenience while focusing on a competitive domestic title race. Aberdeen hold the Scottish Cup and St Mirren won the League Cup in December. Domestic dominance by Glasgow clubs is no longer guaranteed amid perceived poor decision-making at Celtic and criticism of current player quality. Hearts, backed by Tony Bloom, have emerged as the most consistent team and have spent four months atop the Premiership. Celtic face pressure to reduce a six-point deficit ahead of the Tynecastle visit. Hearts have suffered setbacks, including a Scottish Cup exit to Falkirk and losing a League Cup place to St Mirren.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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