Hampden Highs

Moussa Dembele has scored on his last two visits to the National Stadium and he’s hoping to do so again in the Scottish Cup semi-final Glasgow derby

- Mark Henderson And Jo Hendry

CELTIC striker Moussa Dembele is ready for action as the Hoops gear up to face Glasgow rivals Rangers in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup this weekend. The 20-year-old has been working his way back from a hamstring injury picked up during Celtic’s 2-1 victory at Dundee last month, but he has returned to full fitness just in time for one of the biggest games of the season.

Brendan Rodgers’ six-in-a-row champions have already enjoyed a historic campaign with the best start to a domestic season for 100 years, but now they have the opportunity to progress to the final of the Scottish Cup. Securing the oldest football trophy in the world would complete a domestic treble, a feat which has only previously been achieved three times in Celtic’s history, most recently in 2001 under Martin O’Neill.

Fast forward 16 years and the Hoops stand on the precipice of a new and exciting era. One of the key components has been the goal-scoring prowess of the young Frenchman, who has scored 32 goals to date in his first season at Celtic, with no fewer than five of those goals coming against this weekend’s opponents.

Dembele is also the proud scorer of a perfect hat-trick - notched up during the Hoops’ 5-1 demolition of the Ibrox side at Celtic Park last September.

Celtic have faced their Glasgow rivals four times already this season, winning three of the meetings and scoring nine goals in total, while the last time the sides met, they played out a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park. Dembele, however, is adamant that the draw has had no bearing on the team going forward.