'I think...': Celtic man delivers defiant treble message to fans as he addresses 'lull' in form

Celtic defender Liam Scales believes the 5-0 Scottish Cup semi-final thrashing of St Johnstone proves they are over their ‘lull’ and ready to deliver their supporters a sixth domestic treble in nine years.

The Hoops head to Dundee United in the opening game of the split this Saturday knowing they require just one point to mathematically secure their fourth successive - and joint record 55th - Scottish Premiership title, while last Sunday’s win at Hampden Park means they’ll now have the chance to retain their Scottish Cup next May.

Having already secured a Scottish League Cup winner’s medal with the penalty shootout victory over Rangers in December, the Republic of Ireland international is now on the cusp of winning his very first domestic treble with Celtic in his fourth season with the club.

“It would be my first one,” smiled Scales. “I was on loan when they won it most recently and it would be massive for me. It means the world to me and I know maybe other players have won it before, it probably still means the world to them to win a treble. It's amazing.

“I think we've got a brilliant manager, a brilliant captain who have been through it all before, we have a lot of players now who have won trebles here as well. So I think we're all experienced at winning and that helps. There's obviously a long way to go to get the treble. The league's a lot closer, but in a cup final, anything can happen when it's going to be a tough game. So you just want to take it game by game.”

Liam Scales is looking to win more trophies with Celtic by the end of the season. | SNS Group

Having bagged 10 goals in their last two games, Scales believes Celtic have shaken off their recent inconsistency that saw them lose three of their previous eight games prior to Sunday’s victory over St Johnstone, with the Irishman admitting the team are now aiming to keep their “rhythm” going as they approach the final stretch of games.

“I think we just hit sort of a bit of a lull,” admits Scales. “It happens in the season at certain stages. So now that's gone and we've put it behind us, it's really important to get up and kick on for the rest of the year because we can make it a really enjoyable four or five weeks. We want to do as well as we can in the last five league games to give us the best rhythm going into the final.

“I think because of all the success we've had in the last 10 or 15 years, it's become almost the norm to win trebles. That's just the expectation and that's okay. It's there because we've won it in the past and we have to just live with it and try to live up to it. You've seen, even last season in the Cup semi-final, it went all the way to penalties. Obviously, in the League Cup this year, we had a good game against them.

“That's in our minds. But there's also that one from last season where you're like, it could go either way. If we're not at it, we know what they can do. It was a mad game. But that's just an example. They're a good side. If we're not quite 100 percent at it, especially in a Cup final at Hampden when it's not like we’ve got home advantage, then anything can happen in the cup.

“We know that. We know we need to be at our best. We need to be at our best every week to win games.”