ian1964 10,447 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 GARY HOOPER insists Celtic are the best team in the SPL - and they're ready to prove it by dumping Rangers. The hitman's double, including a 90th-minute strike, downed Dundee United yesterday. Victory pulled Celts level with leaders Gers on 24 points, and they are only second in the table because their goal difference is one less. Both Old Firm sides will put their perfect records on the line when they go head-to-head on Sunday. And Hooper, 22, said: "I feel we do have the best squad but I haven't seen all the teams yet. We're probably the best in the league in my opinion though. "We have a good team with all different nationalities bonding together and that showed out there against United. "Both ourselves and Rangers are now eight unbeaten and that makes it a big week. We have a great team spirit and we showed it out there. "We just kept attacking. We kept going and got the winner in the end. The fans played their part and I'm now looking forward to the Old Firm game. "If the whole team plays like we did here we'll have a great chance of making it nine games unbeaten." Hooper also has Kenny Miller in his sights. The Gers striker has scored 11 goals in club competitions this season after hitting the net against Motherwell on Saturday. Hooper now has five after almost six weeks out with a calf injury. He said: "The gaffer has brought me in to score goals. I'm proving that just now. "That is three in the league in two games now. I will just take it from there. My best tally in the Championship was 19. "The target for me is to beat Miller and to keep scoring. I'm near enough 100 per cent fit. Maybe a couple more games and I'll be there." Hooper was the one who hit the deck when ref Dougie McDonald pointed to the spot in the 70th minute yesterday. He'd been barged out the way moments earlier by Garry Kenneth but after play raged on he was felled after Dusan Pernis dived at his feet in the box. McDonald later changed his mind after talks with his linesman Steven Craven and restarted play with a bounce ball. Pernis did get a touch on the ball but Hooper reckons he was fouled on both occasions. He said: "It was a penalty. He got me first and then the ball. The linesman has only seen him get the ball and it was a bad decision. "There were two penalties as far as I was concerned. If I'd gone down with the first one it would have been a penalty and the second one was a penalty too. "It doesn't matter now because we have the three points and we can look forward to the Rangers game. The penalty decision certainly fired us up to go for the winner." Hooper had given Celts the lead after just 13 minutes after Anthony Stokes sent Mark Wilson scampering down the right. Wilson's cross put it on a plate for the Englishman to crash home high into the net. The �£2million ex-Scunthorpe star had other half-chances but after David Goodwillie's deflected strike had brought things level, he smashed home at the death. Hooper said: "It was a good performance. We showed good spirit and created a good few chances. I took two of them and the most important thing was we took the three points. "I wasn't surprised how tough United were because I've watched a couple of DVDs from last year. "They're a good solid team but we got the early goal and made it count before we got our late winner." Hoops boss Neil Lennon had made Shaun Maloney skipper in the absence of the injured Scott Brown. But the winner didn't arrive until Maloney was replaced by Paddy McCourt, who pulled on the armband then put in the initial ball that caused the confusion in the box for the goal. Lennon said: "Shaun has come through the academy and has shown great maturity this season. He's a player the fans can identify with. "He's a great role model not just for the fans but for the players as well. He's got a fight to get the armband off Paddy though as I think he is wearing it home! "We'd been toying with the idea of putting Paddy on but we were playing so well we didn't know who to take off. "But when it got so late in the game we felt we'd throw him on to see if he could create something. "Paddy makes an impact but the game should have been out of sight. The build-up play was breathtaking at times as well as the pace with which we attacked. "I always felt we may get something but their keeper was making great saves. We should have been two or three up at half-time but when we went in I was quite calm. "We had so much of the game and they scored with a deflection. For 30 minutes in the second half it was sheer quality. "Wave after wave of attack - and the fans have connected with the team and the team has connected with the fans. They had the whole place rocking. "It's important to keep the winning run going and it's important we get performances like that. "We went to watch Rangers on Saturday and they were impressive in the second half. "Something has to give next week. It's a challenge but we'll celebrate this result first." Read more: http://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/sport/spl/3184402/Now-well-see-whos-tops-Gers.html#ixzz12h53eaqX 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PTB Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Who is he anyway? 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
aftershock 0 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Cant even be arsed reading it.......bring it on :spl: 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tannochsidebear 2,320 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Get it pinned up on the wall at Auchenhowie all week long. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
maineflyer 0 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Cant even be arsed reading it.......bring it on :spl: Ditto. This latest lifeform to evolve from the parkhead pond will find out soon enough what other mouths learned, that you play first and boast later. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian1964 10,447 Posted October 18, 2010 Author Share Posted October 18, 2010 Ditto. This latest lifeform to evolve from the parkhead pond will find out soon enough what other mouths learned, that you play first and boast later. Correct,and watch the massive TIMPLOSION, coins,lighters,mobile phones,bungee jumping,pitch invasions,scarves........canny feckin wait:spl: 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gers4Life 0 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 I cant feckin wait BRING IT ON!!!!!! 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewarty 1,877 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 They really are getting ahead of themselves. Lennon thought their display yesterday was "breathtaking" and this joker thinks they are the best team in the world. Building up nicely for the weekend but we've got bigger fish to fry before then 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Cole 0 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Fantastic. Yet again, no need for a team talk. They will never, ever learn. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
metlika 0 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Scum in pre match outburst, plus not actually watching teams play is bloody naive and stupid, but typical of them so bring it on. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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