“I THINK everyone in the world appreciates the rivalry between Celtic and Rangers,” reckons Mohamed Elyounoussi, “but I don’t think you fully understand it until you’re directly involved in it – as a player, a manager or a supporter.”

Since signing a season-long loan deal at Paradise on August 30, Mohamed Elyounoussi has seen Celtic win once at Ibrox in the league, and once at Hampden to successfully defend the League Cup for a fourth consecutive year.

Despite losing 2-1 to their city rivals at Celtic Park before the turn of the year, the Treble Treble champions have been relentless in 2020 – undefeated domestically, and having forged an impressive 13-point lead at the top of the Premiership ahead of Sunday’s encounter.

Just in the door before the Hoops’ last trip across town, the Norwegian didn’t feature in Neil Lennon’s matchday squad back in September. He then played 45 minutes before succumbing to injury in the League Cup final at Hampden, and, as such, didn’t feature at all in the final derby of last decade.

Still, the 25-year-old midfielder has been wowed by the electric atmosphere that envelopes each clash wherever it’s played.

“In the League Cup final, I played 45 minutes with a broken toe,” said Elyounoussi in an exclusive interview with this week’s Celtic View. “I was delighted that we won that game, the derby and the cup, even if it wasn’t exactly ideal for me from an injury perspective!

“Everyone wants to play in these games, the big ones, especially at Ibrox. I haven’t played there, so it will be a special moment for me. I’m looking forward to it. We’ve got a full week’s worth of preparation under our belts before this one, which is good. We’ve trained well this week so far, and all we want now is to go there and put in a good performance.”

With the likes of Scott Brown, Nir Bitton and James Forrest to learn from at Lennoxtown – all veterans of the club and the fixture itself – Elyounoussi says he’s in great company ahead of Sunday’s game, but likewise said the best way to take in the occasion is with a top performance out on the pitch.

The 25-year-old replaced goalscorer, Odsonne Edouard during the Hoops’ 5-0 dismantling of St Mirren at Paradise at the weekend, and started up top alongside the French hitman in their 2-2 away draw with Livingston in the game before that.

Should the Norwegian get the nod this weekend, he’s raring to go and will do everything in his power to put on a show for the travelling support in green and white.

“There is so much hype around the fixture, and, for me, the League Cup final exceeded those expectations,” he continued. “The atmosphere at Hampden was electric, but it was a bit surreal as well because of the 50/50 split in the stands.

“It’s going be a different story at Ibrox, but we want to give our fans something to cheer about and be as loud as they possible can be.

“I expect there will be a lot of tension around the stadium, I expect it will be physical on the pitch, I expect it will be an aggressive game – but I’m confident that if we keep our composure, then we can take three points home with us.”

For the full interview with Mohamed Elyounoussi, see this week’s Celtic View, out now.

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Mohamed Elyounoussi’s hopes for Ibrox encounter