Matt O’Riley described the depth of Celtic’s squad as “pretty crazy” as the Hoops stand on the brink of securing the domestic treble.
The Viaplay Cup winners clinched the cinch Premiership title last Sunday with a 2-0 win over Hearts at Tynecastle and only Scottish Cup final opponents Inverness from the Championship stand between Ange Postecoglou’s side and the clean sweep.
The Hoops’ prowess was reflected in the PFA Scotland nominations for player of the year, where Motherwell striker Kevin van Veen is the only non-Celtic player among the four nominees, with Reo Hatate, Kyogo Furuhashi and last year’s winner Callum McGregor representing the Hoops.
O’Riley is nominated for young player of the year along with team-mate Liel Abada, Rangers midfielder Malik Tillman and Albion Rovers striker Charlie Reilly.
With a nod to Celtic players like Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers, who may well consider themselves unlucky not to have been nominated, the Parkhead midfielder said: “Our depth is pretty crazy to be honest.
“We have boys who are very good players who are not even making the bench.
“That is a tough position for them to be in but it also shows that competition is really, really high.
“That comes from the training pitch every day. If we win a game 5-0 the training the next day will still be at a very high level and I think the standard we have set in terms of pushing each other every day definitely helps us.”
As well as highlighting the work ethic of the squad, O’Riley also talked up the personality of the Celtic dressing room.
He said: “First and foremost, everyone in our group is a nice person.
“We don’t have anyone in the team who is going to step out of line or if anyone does step out of line the slightest bit they will get told and will be back together on the same page.
“I think that is probably the main message, that we are just good people.
“When you work with good people it is more enjoyable and naturally you are going to work hard for each other.”
The Hoops travel to Ibrox on Saturday as champions for the final Old Firm game of the season which, for “safety and security” reasons, will be played in front of home fans only.
O’Riley said: “I would be looking forward to it even if we weren’t league champions and the fact that we also don’t have our fans there will be a unique experience but it should be fun.
“Even when our fans are in the stadium there are still hundreds of thousands if not millions watching on TV.
“Obviously we would like them there but we are not too bothered in the sense that the motivation levels will still be high and if you are not up for a Rangers game there is probably something wrong with you.”
Rodgers enjoying 'exciting period' as Celtic open gap at top of Scottish Premiership
Brendan Rodgers says it is an "exciting period" for Celtic as they moved three points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership with a 4-1 win over Hearts.
Celtic made a sluggish start to the match and were lucky not to find themselves behind at the break as Blair Spittal and Lawrence Shankland spurned glorious chances for Hearts.
However, they came out revitalised in the second half as Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn scored twice in five minutes to put them 2-0 up on the hour mark.
Adam Idah scored twice, netting on either side of Musa Drammeh's consolation, with his second coming from the penalty spot in the 94th minute.
Celtic have now won all seven of their away league games this season by an aggregate score of 22-2.
After Aberdeen's first loss of the season earlier on Saturday, Celtic gave themselves some breathing space at the top of the league, while also moving 11 points clear of rivals Rangers, who sit third.
Rodgers was delighted with Celtic's response to the first half, praising the players' adaptation.
"I'm really pleased. Tynecastle is a really tough place so to win 4-1 was really pleasing," Rodgers said.
"Second half, we figured out their press. They have normally been pressing in 4-4-2 but changed it slightly. It just meant we had to drop a man in our build-up play.
"We had some good moments in the first half, but once we were able to play through that pressure, I thought in the second half we were excellent.
"It's a very exciting period for us. All the players know they will play, they just need to be ready."
Clement 'cannot ask much more' from Rangers despite Dundee United draw
Philippe Clement was left frustrated following Rangers' 1-1 draw with Dundee United, but acknowledged he "cannot ask much more" from his players.
The Gers dropped their first points at Ibrox in the Scottish Premiership season, and could trail leaders Celtic by 11 if the Hoops beat Hearts later on Saturday.
Sam Dalby's 36th-minute header put the visitors in front, though Vaclav Cerny's smart finish levelled the contest midway through the second half.
The hosts pushed for the winning goal, with Ianis Hagi and Robin Propper denied by United goalkeeper Jack Walton later on.
Yet, despite over 70% of the possession and nine shots on target to their opponents' one, Clement's side were forced to settle for a share of the spoils.
"We need to reward ourselves, and we need to play like we played in the second half, 90 minutes long," he told Rangers TV. "Like that, you strangle teams like you did in the past, and that's the football I want to see.
"I cannot say anything about commitment in the second half, the team pushed until the last seconds to score a winner, and the goalkeeper made some excellent saves. The team was not rewarded in that way.
"It's frustrating to lose points in a game where you face one shot on target, and it's a goal. Last season, we won these games and, now, you lose points, so we need to get back to the level of before.
"They fought until the end. We had really good opportunities. You cannot ask much more, only to score the second goal. Then, you have a totally different feeling after the game."
Meanwhile, Jack Butland was left to rue what might have been, with the goalkeeper insisting he and his team-mates must up their game.
"It can't take until the second half to get going," he said. "We've got to be better. We've given away too many easy goals against teams that are just looking to hang onto something.
"It's not a great result at all. It feels like a loss. These games have got to be wins. It's not what the fans deserve from the game today. We need to do much more."
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