Jeff Stelling has raised concerns about the dominance of Rangers and Celtic, suggesting that their presence in the final is detrimental to Scottish football. This viewpoint, however, has been met with surprise from Ally McCoist, the former Rangers player turned pundit.
Stelling, a legendary sports broadcaster, questioned the value of having the Old Firm clubs in the final, implying that it was predictable and not beneficial for the sport. He suggested that the two Glasgow giants should just play each other every week, disregarding other teams in the league.
“The only reason they haven’t met in the final is because they’ve knocked each other out beforehand. It’s not good, for god’s sake,” Stelling remarked during a live segment on talkSPORT. “Every English football fan will be thinking Rangers and Celtic in the final, well there’s a surprise. Why don’t they just play each other every week? Forget the rest, just play each other every single week.”
McCoist, who was present during the discussion, expressed his amazement at Stelling’s comments. “It’s amazing,” he said.
Responding to Stelling’s suggestion that the opinions of English football fans mattered, McCoist retorted, “Jeff, I have to inform you that we up here don’t give a monkey’s what English football fans think. Yesterday’s game was a good one, but the one on Saturday, what a game by the way.”
The duo’s exchange followed the news that the Scottish Cup final would feature both Celtic and Rangers for the first time since 2002, a fact they found hard to believe.