Anthony Ralston Celtic Q+A in full: Blocking out Glasgow Derby 'craziness' and embracing Parkhead atmosphere

It is a massive game on Sunday, how are you all feeling, given what is at stake?

We know it's a big game but our mentality as a team is we don't treat it different from any other game. We have prepared well and we have been training well and we are all in a good place as a team and we are looking forward to it.

Given the transition the team has been through over the season is it difficult not to look too far ahead and think we are on the brink of this title and two wins will do it and it's ours?

As a team, we are not looking too far ahead, we've got a game on Sunday and we are very much looking forward to it and we know the focus is the three points and we do not look to the next game until the one at the weekend is over.

Is there a sense of writing a few wrongs from the Scottish Cup semi-final?

That was a difficult one to take but we have all moved on from that and we have had a game since then it was a great performance last weekend and it has put us back on track and has put us in the right place for the game coming up at the weekend. We have had a good week's training and we are ready to go.

A win would put you nine points clear with nine to play for and a massive goal difference as well, how exciting a prospect is that for the players and how much is the mentality that a win on Sunday practically makes you champions?

We don't look at it that way. We don't focus on this game as the outcome of the season. We focus on this game as just three points to help us towards what we want to achieve by the end of the season. We have games thereafter to take the same mentality into them as well. We don't get too far ahead of ourselves and we focus every day in training on what we need to do our focus is on getting the three points and that's it.

Ange Postecoglou has been nominated for the Manager of the Year can you give us your thoughts on the job he has done to be nominated for that award?

It is recognition for the great work that he has done over the course of this season with the team. It is thoroughly deserved and congratulations to him. It is well deserved as you can see the way we have played over the season and everybody has contributed to the efforts of the team and the style of play so it is more than deserved.

Callum McGregor and Tom Rogic have been nominated as player of the year and are in the team of the year, it was a big job for Callum to come in and captain the club off the back of Scott Brown as you will know the influence he had at Celtic, Callum has stepped up to that role really impressively hasn't he?

Callum (McGregor) has come into that role and he has done brilliantly. It was a hard task to come in and fill Broony's boots as well because toy saw the influence he had on the club. I think Callum has done really well and he has led us into every game and led by example on the training pitch and in games. He deserves all the plaudits that he is getting. I hope it continues that way in the future.

What does it mean to you as a Celtic fan to have played such a crucial role in the team this season and to be on the cusp of winning a title knowing that if you do beat your rivals at home it will be all but secured?

It would be easy to get carried away and to think about the title, the big games coming up and different things like that but individually and as a team we have the same focus and mindset and that is we take each game as it comes and it's three points that's on the line on Sunday and that is where our focus lies not on anything else.

What do you expect from Rangers after their taxing Europa League semi-final against RB Leipzig and do you expect them to be right up for this one as they always are?

It is a derby game and they are crazy. In these games, there are things that happen and we are aware of that. We all have experienced it through the course of this season and we know it is a game that both sides want to win but we take all the craziness out of it and we focus on ourselves as a team, we focus on our football and we don't let the noise of it all get involved. We focus on ourselves and we focus on the three points and go out and play our football.

Looking back on the semi-final defeat is there something specific that the players need to do differently to get the result this time around?

No, I wouldn't say so. I feel that's football and things happen and you learn each time. We have analysed what we needed to and we have moved on. We had a game since then and it has put us back on track, it is a game where we are all in a good place both physically and mentally and we are ready to go for the weekend.

Does having the majority of the support give the players that extra bit of confidence going into it?

Celtic Park with a full crowd - there is not much better than that. We'll be looking forward to playing in front of the supporters and they are the best fans in the world, you cannot complain about a full crowd at Celtic Park.

How do you make sure you embrace that atmosphere and use it to your advantage rather than getting sidetracked by it as a player?

It comes with the experience of playing in front of these crowds and also it is about focusing on our style of play and our football and not letting the noise affect that in any kind of way or the kind of game it is or any other external factors. It is about focusing on us as a team and what we need to do to win that game. That's what will get us through regardless of anything else.

There is a lot of togetherness and real bond within the team and the manager has spoken about it being the personnel driven and hiring the right people and then the environment takes care of itself. Is the environment something that has been fostered by the players and does he let the captain have his say in it?

We've got a great changing room and whether the boys have been here from previous years and whether boys have come in we have all embraced each other in terms of making an effort, especially with the likes of the Japanese boys that have come into the club in terms of the language barrier and things. We make a lot of time to bond with each other and that has been driven by the gaffer coming in. It is key that the personality is there as well as the football and I feel this season we have a right good changing room and all the boys have gelled really well together and it shows on the pitch with our football.

Having been at Celtic for a while are you one of those who can help the foreign-based players settle quicker?

I like to have a bit of banter with the guys and have a laugh. That is important in the changing room and we have quite a lot of boys in here who can help with that. Yet it is also important that you make the effort, especially with the boys who have the language barrier and need to settle in as they come from different countries and have different backgrounds. It is important that if you have been here for any length of time and understand the club and how it works and different things then you try and help them settle as much as you can. We have a great changing room of home-based players who can do that not just myself and I feel the boys have settled in great and it has been good.

You have had a cracking season and your goal against Hearts on the opening day of the season was a great goal - what is your own personal highlight?

That's a good question. I think I've got many highlights but the overall one would be the consistency of playing has been the main thing for me this season. It is no secret but this is the club where I want to play my football and I have been a fan all of my life. The consistency of playing week in, week out and being involved in the games and just contributing to the team over the course of the season up until now has been the main thing after having last season where I wasn't involved. Being able to turn that around and being a big part of the team this season and being involved with the boys and playing is my overall highlight among the other things that have happened this season. It has been great.

How has Ange personally changed your game, your approach, your mentality for example?

My mentality has always stayed the same. Get the head down, work hard, listen and learn. The gaffer has been great in implementing his style of play and he has also given me the confidence by saying go in and play and the trust is there. The way he has implemented the style of football which is different for a full-back and the other lads have had to learn their roles and we have just tried to embrace it as much as possible and listen and it has clearly been working. He has done a great job with the whole team overall.