Celtic stronger despite Van Dijk departure, says Ronny Deila

Celtic manager Ronny Deila insists his side are stronger this season despite the loss of Virgil van Dijk on the final day of the transfer window.

Van Dijk joined Southampton in an £11.5m deal following a summer of uncertainty over the former Groningen central defender's future.

Celtic play their first game without the Dutchman when they travel to Aberdeen on Saturday, and Deila expects the opposition to pose a greater threat to his team's five-in-a-row aspirations after they mounted a decent challenge last season.

Speaking to Sky Sports News HQ he said: "I think they are stronger because they have one year more experience and have added a couple of players who are good and also haven't lost any important players."

While acknowledging the Celtic defence will take time to settle with Van Dijk's replacement Jozo Simunovic settling in at the club with fellow new recruits Dedryck Boyata, Saidy Janko and Tyler Blackett, Deila is confident any interruption will be minimal.

"I don't think we are weaker," said the Norwegian. "Maybe in a small period we will be weaker because Virgil has left but if you see the team now compared to what it was last year then we are stronger.

"Last year we talked about winning the league in January, and now we are starting in September. This will be a very long season for us. We will be fighting in four tournaments and we want to win at the weekend - make no doubt about that - but there will be no trophies on Saturday, win or lose.

"If we win we will put ourselves in a very, very good situation by beating the number two team from last year away and that will make it much harder for Aberdeen."

Both Celtic and Aberdeen are undefeated in the Scottish Premiership this season, with Derek McInnes' team having played a game fewer.

The Dons failed to beat Celtic in four outings last season and Deila believes Saturday's Sky Live clash is a vital game for the home team.

"I think winning at home is very important for Aberdeen if they are going to battle for the title," he said. "But it is way too early to talk about who is going to win the league this year.

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"I think the four wins last year gave us confidence. We have been there many times before and we know what is expected and that is going to be important.

"In the end it is about performances and if we perform better than Aberdeen then we will win the game."

Watch Aberdeen take on Celtic at Pittodrie live on Sky Sports 2 HD from midday on Saturday.