Brendan Rodgers looks forward to 'a bit of fun' against Rangers after 'great Celtic day' against Hearts

What the Celtic manager said after the 3-0 win over Hearts

Brendan Rodgers admits he’s looking forward to a “bit of fun” against Rangers next weekend after Celtic moved six points clear at the top of the Premiership table.

A first-half double from Kyogo Furahashi and a late Matt O’Riley penalty doubled the champions’ advantage ahead of Rangers’ game in hand against Kilmarnock on Sunday afternoon.

With Callum McGregor getting more minutes in his legs and Daizen Maeda returning from injury late in the contest, there was plenty for Rodgers to be pleased about.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers celebrates with coach Gavin Strachan after the opening goal in the 3-0 win over Hearts. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group)

And, although he tried valiantly to keep a lid on things, the Northern Irishman couldn’t hide his growing enthusiasm ahead of what could be a defining derby next Saturday.

He said: “It felt like a great Celtic day today. I thought it was fantastic in terms of the performance, result and the game. There was a great feeling in the stadium.

“These are big games at this time of the season so you want big contributions from your best players and I thought our top players were great. We looked like a proper team today.

“The energy rolled from the stands down onto the field and hopefully the fans were happy with that. I will only [say] we are champions if and when it happens. In the meantime, we won’t get too carried away. We will stay calm, recover, get our team ready and then next week will be incredible.

“You can see mentally we are in a really good place. But we’ll take nothing for granted and keep our composure. We have a lot of work to do in the week to get our plan ready. And then next Saturday we can have a bit of fun. It’s going to be absolutely on fire here next week. I’m so looking forward to it.”

Rodgers revealed he wouldn’t be tuning in to events from Ibrox on Sunday lunchtime, preferring to head for the coast for some fresh air.

He added: “No, I’m heading out with my family. I’ll be going up to the seaside and enjoying a bit of time up there. I’ll be resting and spending time with the family.”