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Celtic's dominance will be tough to stop, says James McFadden

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Celtic will be tough to stop in their pursuit of an unprecedented domestic triple treble, says James McFadden.

Celtic are “back to their best” and their bid for a domestic triple treble will be hard to stop, says James McFadden.

Ryan Christie scored the winner as Celtic beat Aberdeen to win the Scottish League Cup final on Sunday and earn Brendan Rodgers his seventh straight domestic trophy.

Rangers came from behind to overcome Hearts 2-1 at Tynecastle and leapfrog their Glasgow rivals at the top of the Scottish Premiership but McFadden still expects Celtic to secure an unprecedented triple treble.

Celtic's Ryan Christie celebrates his goal to make it 1-0
Image: Celtic's Ryan Christie celebrates his winning goal against Aberdeen in the Scottish League Cup final

"They are favourites to do it. They will have challengers but [it remains] whether they can maintain their level of performance required," McFadden told Sky Sports News.

"Celtic are back to their best. They are winning every week. They weren't at their best yesterday in terms of performance but they win games when they have to. That's a message to the rest of the league.

Celtic are unbeaten in their last eight games in all competitions and moved a step closer to qualifying for the Europa League knockout phases last week prior to lifting the first domestic silverware of the campaign at Hampden Park.

 during the Betfred Cup Final between Celtic and Aberdeen at Hampden Park on December 2, 2018 in Glasgow, Scotland.
Image: Brendan Rodgers' Scottish League Cup title was his seventh straight domestic success

"I can't see anybody stopping them," McFadden added. "If they can maintain their levels of performance they have [produced] recently…

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"I'd imagine they will strengthen in January. They had a poor summer transfer window so they will be looking to strengthen in January and lay a marker down to the rest of the league. It will be really tough for anybody to stop them."

Rangers are unbeaten in their last seven league fixtures and their victory against Hearts moved them a point clear at the top of the table, having played one match more than Celtic.

Steven Gerrard celebrates Rangers' victory at Hearts
Image: James McFadden is impressed by the job Steven Gerrard is doing at Rangers

McFadden, now an assistant coach for Scotland, believes both Glasgow sides will be busy in the transfer window as they begin a busy period of festive fixtures.

"Their [Rangers'] progression has been excellent. I think Steven Gerrard has been excellent," McFadden said.

"At the start there were maybe mistakes that he made but he is young, he has learned from them and that is what I like.

"He has brought a level of performance and standard to the club that is there for all to see. They are winning games, doing well and potentially could maybe challenge Celtic.

"But I think they are going to fall short because they need to bring that consistency level. They will need to strengthen in January as well but it is a big month for both sides."

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