Ange Postecoglou is expecting a quality game against Rangers next weekend after his side warmed up for the derby with a thumping 9-0 win at Tannadice.
Celtic are the only side in the Premiership with a 100 per cent record after the first five games with their title defence getting off to a perfect start. Hat-tricks from Kyogo and Liel Abada gave them their biggest win since they hammered Aberdeen by the same scoreline in 2010, and they can extend their lead at the top to five points next weekend if they beat their rivals at home.
They have a trip to Dingwall to face Ross County in the Premier Sports Cup first and Postecoglou is hoping for a sixth win on the spin there to keep the momentum building. He said on Sportsound : "It'll be a good game (against Rangers). They're going really well, they're a good side, so it will be a good quality football game. We're looking forward to it but we've got Wednesday first, Ross County away in the cup. That's not going to be an easy game so we've got to go there, give a good account of ourselves, and play our football, then build on that for the Rangers game."
Kyogo and Abada's trebles came alongside strikes from Jota, Josip Juranovic and Carl Starfelt to put the Hoops back on top spot. United, meanwhile, are rooted at the bottom of the table, having conceded 24 goals in five games in all competitions since their 1-0 win over AZ Alkmaar at Tannadice.
Postecoglou said: "We knew Dundee United were going through a tough spell so I guess we wanted to set our stall early and put them under pressure. In the end, we wore them down, and the quality of our goals were really good.
"It's not about just going out to win a game of football, it's about going out and playing our game irrespective of how the opposition set up. The boys were really good. There was a patch in the first half where we got a bit scrappy but we rectified that quickly and the rest of the game was good."
And on his hattrick heroes, he added: "Kyogo's been great, he's such an important part of what we do, but it's not just his goals, it's the way he harasses the opponents. It's his overall work-rate, all of our strikers work hard but they also get the rewards. Liel's a fantastic young player. Everything we've asked of him in the last 12-14 months, he's taken every challenge and he wants to learn and get better. It was a good game for him to come in because we knew he'd get plenty of the ball and it was great for him to get his goals."
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