Rangers vs Celtic: Scott Brown and Scott Arfield needle starts before the Betfred Cup Final
CELTIC captain Scott Brown and Rangers star Scott Arfield exchanged words just moments before today’s Betfred Cup Final got underway.
Brown and Arfield kicked off the mind games ahead of the Old Firm clash following a firm handshake between the pair.
BT Sport cameras captured the needle, with the Hoops captain responding to a comment from his midfield rival.
It’s not the first time the duo have almost clashed.
Canada skipper Arfield mocked Brown with the Celts idol’s trademark ‘Broony’ celebration after Rangers beat their rivals 1-0 at Ibrox in December 2018.
The former Falkirk and Burnley man later insisted he wasn’t bothered by what the treble Treble hero thought of the taunt.
He said: “There are a few things you need to win this game.
“Scott Brown has done it for years, and probably got in the head of players a lot easier with different players.
“It is just mind games really. He has done it for years.
“That wasn’t my thinking, it was just spur of the moment. It was to win the game.
“I am not bothered about what he thinks. I am worried about winning games for Rangers.
“It was one of those things, I can’t even remember it.
“When I got home my mate showed me it, and I have seen it 300 times.
“I can’t remember when it was in the game. I was appealing for a foul I think.
“You have to win your individual battles to win an Old Firm game.”
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Brown - who scored a crucial winner for Celtic against Hamilton in midweek - said he didn’t see Arfield mocking him.
Speaking in March, he said: “That’s part and parcel of football.
“You win games and people celebrate. It’s an emotional day and people will always want to win.
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“I didn’t even know it happened at the time. It didn’t annoy me.
“Nothing annoys me any more because I’ve seen it all. I’m always going to get it more than most people anyway.
“It was all the usual stuff — I’ve retired again, I’m s***e — but I just keep soldiering on.”
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