Leeds speculation is ‘just noise’ for Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou insisted he paid no attention to the “noise” of Leeds speculation after watching Celtic beat St Mirren 5-1 in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup at Parkhead.

The Hoops boss is rumored to be on the radar of the Elland Road club, who last week parted ways with Jesse Marsch amid a Premier League relegation battle.

Celtic eventually overcame a spirited Saints side with goals from Daizen Maeda, a Reo Hatate double – one from the penalty spot after Buddies defender Richard Taylor was sent off for handball – a first Hoops goal for Oh Hyeon-gyu and a hit by Matt O’Riley.

Mark O’Hara scored a consolation goal for the visitors and afterwards, when asked what he would say to any Celtic fans who might be worried, the Hoops boss referred to his usual way of dealing with speculation.

“I don’t think I need to tell them anything,” said Postecoglou, who revealed that goalscorer Kyogo Furuhashi will undergo a scan on a shoulder injury after being replaced by Liel Abada in the first half.

“I think what the fans want is for me to make sure I focus on preparing the team every week to win football games and play football that will excite them and make them proud. That’s my responsibility.

“I get the excitement around things like that. If I had a player in a similar boat, I’d just say to him: ‘Keep playing your football and don’t worry about anything else, all this stuff is just noise.’

“I take my own advice on things like that. I’ve been around the game long enough to know how quickly it changes.

“If anyone thinks that for the last seven days I’ve been thinking about anything other than preparing the team to play today, then they obviously don’t have a clear idea of ​​what I’m talking about.”

Of Furuhashi, who suffered a shoulder problem last season, Postecoglou said: “I’m not really sure. It’s a shoulder. She had a similar problem last year and speaking to the medical team, we will scan her on Monday and see what the problem is.

“Cu Kyogo is a fast healer and knowing him will try to train tomorrow.

“We have to be careful with him. We will wait and see what the extent of the injury is and determine a recovery plan for him.”

St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson noted that three substitutes turned the game firmly Celtic’s way after his side made a decent fist of the game.

He said: “For 75 minutes there was nothing between the teams, which is the biggest credit I can pay my players.

“They bring three players and score four goals. That shows the level of quality they have.

“We made a mistake in the first half, we limited them to very few chances and we were punished for that mistake.

“The decision (penalty) in 75 minutes completely changes the game.

“Whether it’s the right decision or the wrong decision, I don’t know. We don’t have an analyst here.

“After that, they’re a pretty tough team to play with 11 and they open us up.

“Credit to our players, they had a real try. It’s hard for me to ask the players anymore.

“We kept taking Celtic’s game, we kept pressing them, but the game changed after 75 minutes.

“They have top players who have come in and changed the game for them.”