Ally McCoist is in no doubt that Celtic are "by far and away" the best team in Scotland.
The former Rangers striker admitted it 'breaks his heart' to deliver such a verdict but stated "you have got to be honest".
McCoist has been majorly impressed by Celtic in Europe this season with Brendan Rodgers' side to take on Dinamo Zagreb this evening in the league phase of the Champions League.
Displays on the continent - beating Slovan Bratislava, drawing with Atalanta and beating RB Leipzig - have clearly shown the gulf between Celtic and Rangers for McCoist.
On TNT Sports, he said: “The results have been great [for Celtic in Europe]. The performance at home against Leipzig was as good as anything I have seen from Celtic in Europe in a long, long time, really.
"They are a good team. Very good team, by far and away, at this moment in time. Breaks my heart to say it, but you have got to be honest. By far and away the best team in the country.
“They had a good performance in Atalanta. They came away with a draw. Good result. After a really shocking result in Dortmund where they got taken to the cleaners. But they haven’t half recovered well.
"There were question marks about Celtic. Could Brendan or would Brendan change the way Celtic played against teams who would technically perhaps be better than them and more fancied than them.
“And he did it, went over to Italy and got a great result. The game against Brugge was probably a little bit of a reminder. I wouldn’t say it was a wake-up call, but a little reminder, at that level, you have to be at the top of your game all the time. They got a point at home against Brugge, which isn’t a disaster. Celtic have been very, very impressive this season, particularly in Europe.”
Celtic take on Dinamo Zagreb tonight with Rangers in action against Spurs on Thursday night in the Europa League.
The Glasgow rivals will then go head-to-head in the final of the Premier Sports Cup on Sunday, December 15.
