Celtic suffer Hearts vs Rangers disappointment as Tynecastle clash hope vanishes amid Tony Bloom praise
Celtic are in the way of Hearts and their pursuit of the Premiership title.
Celtic boss Martin O’Neill admits his hopes of a draw between Hearts and Rangers fell flat - as he praised the Jambos bid for the Premiership title.
The defending champions watched on as Stephen Kingsley and Lawrence Shankland goals sealed a 2-1 success for the Tynecastle hosts. It means ahead of the Old Firm this Sunday, Hearts could be top of the league by six points ahead of two final matches against Falkirk and Celtic, should they defeat Motherwell on Saturday. That will then mean Celtic, already with an inferior goal difference, have to beat Rangers to keep realistic hopes alive.
Rangers meanwhile are seven points off Hearts and the Parkhead gaffer reckons it’s now a two horse race for glory unless something spectacular occurs. Their goal will be to win all their games but Celtic know those in maroon now are in full control of their destiny.
Will Hearts win the Premiership title?
"Rangers are number of points behind Hearts, and there are only three games left, so that would be difficult to overcome at this particular stage,” O’Neill said on talkSPORT. “I think that’s the case but it's not impossible. It can happen. You can still win your games and there are very difficult matches still for all of us to come through.
"From our own position, we have to try and win the three games. But even then, strangely, that might not mathematically be enough, with Hearts having a better goal difference than us. I still think there's a couple of twists still left. If you are looking at it from a viewpoint of what you can do, all we can do is try to win our matches, and they are difficult matches.
"I suppose probably deep down I was looking for a draw (between Hearts and Rangers). A draw is very, very difficult to cheer on, but I think that was the case as that would then have put it in our own hands. As it turns out, mathematically speaking, it's not actually in our own hands. It's actually a great credit to Hearts this season for investing and going strongly at it, getting their noses in front and being able to stay there.
Martin O’Neill on Premiership title race
The Hoops have called upon O’Neill - due to depart again once this term concludes - twice this term after the departures of previous managers Brendan Rodgers and Wilfried Nancy. He feels Celtic are still in the fight, however, minority owner Tony Bloom’s investment into Hearts to the tune of £9.86m alongside his Jamestown Analytics software could see the Jambos emerge as regular title contenders in O’Neill’s mind.
"From our own viewpoint, it's been a tough old season,” he added. “The players have had a number of managers. I don't know how many times I've come in myself. It feels like about six or seven in the one year! But credit to the team, we're still fighting, we still have a chance. There's no question about it. We still have to try and win our games but it's been a long time since a split game between Celtic and Rangers doesn't constitute the winning of the title.
“Tony Bloom has invested in Brighton and he’s done the same at Hearts. If you look at it from a neutral point of view, which I am not, but if you were then there’s been excitement this season. Hearts have thrown down the gauntlet to the two big teams and I think that can only be good for the Premiership.”