Moussa Dembele couldn’t have timed his first ever hat-trick any better.
The 20-year-old took full advantage of Leigh Griffiths’ injury to net three times in Celtic’s 5-1 win over Sevco.
After weeks of hot air and hype from the Ibrox new boys they were given a lesson in just how far they still have to come to compete for top honours.
Dembele scored two quick-fire goals before the break to put Celtic in front, set up Scott Sinclair for the third, scored the fourth then celebrated Stuart Armstrong’s stoppage time fifth goal.
After the game the striker said: “It was the perfect day, to beat Rangers at home, to get the three points and for me to score my first ever hat-trick is something unbelievable and I’ll remember it all my life.
“We scored a lot of goals and we played very well and that’s why we won the game. The fans were great with us and they supported us until the end of the game. t was something special. When you play in a derby it’s always something special, and I want to thank the fans for their support.
“It was like a dream for me – to come here, start in the derby and score my first ever hat-trick is something huge.”
GOAL: Dembele heads home to make it Celtic 1 Rangers 0. Don’t miss a thing with our blog https://t.co/RdKYTZ8uvR pic.twitter.com/GBxlDtJwbZ
— Scottish Sun Sport (@scotsunsport) September 10, 2016
GOAL: Dembele gets his second with a stunner. Don’t miss any of the action with our blog https://t.co/RdKYTZ8uvR pic.twitter.com/1Nw1KoWCHV
— Scottish Sun Sport (@scotsunsport) September 10, 2016
GOAL: Dembele gets an Old Firm treble. Follow the action with our blog https://t.co/RdKYTZ8uvR pic.twitter.com/0husr2OAfa
— Scottish Sun Sport (@scotsunsport) September 10, 2016
Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers said: “Moussa could play every week but I have to make the team work. Sometimes he will play, sometimes he won’t.
“Leigh is a wonderful finisher but it wasn’t his day today, it was Moussa’s day and the rest of the guys.
“So, three great goals, a 20-year-old player, you can see he is a big talent and hopefully he has come to a club who can develop that talent.”