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Rangers nowhere to be seen as Celtic make revealing new football rankings
Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

Celtic have made the latest ranking of the strongest clubs outside Europe’s five major leagues, but Scottish football has just one representative in the top 50.

Football Ranked’s latest figures include clubs from Europe, Asia and South America, with Martin O’Neill’s side sitting alongside some familiar European opponents.

But where are Rangers?

Is a front three of Osmand, Duran and Hassan Celtic’s strongest attacking line-up now? If not, who comes in instead?

Yang, Jota and others are all in contention too…

Celtic make Elo top 50 as Rangers fail to earn a place

According to Football Ranked’s latest Elo rankings, Celtic sit 43rd with a rating of 1,541 points.

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Rangers are completely absent, leaving the Hoops as the only Scottish Premiership club to make the list.

Sporting CP top the rankings with 1,777 points, followed by Benfica on 1,751 and Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal on 1,739.

Ajax occupy 26th place with 1,601 points, while English Championship side West Ham United are 19th with a rating of 1,613.

Celtic are just three points ahead of Sparta Prague, who sit 45th, and nine ahead of Turkish side Trabzonspor in 46th.

However, the gap to Benfica stands at 210 points, a sizeable difference considering the Portuguese club beat Celtic 4-1 in the Europa League last Thursday.

What Elo rankings mean and how Celtic’s rating is calculated

Elo rankings measure the strength of football teams based on their results and the quality of the opposition they face.

Each club is given a numerical rating which changes after every match. Beating a stronger opponent generally earns a team more points than defeating one they would already be expected to beat. Losing to weaker opposition can also have a greater negative impact than being beaten by a higher-rated side.

Football Ranked’s system considers home advantage, the margin of victory and the importance of the competition. European results carry more weight than ordinary domestic league matches.

The rankings are separate from UEFA’s official club coefficient system, which measures performances in European competitions over five seasons. While Celtic’s impressive Premiership attacking statistics show their domestic strength, Elo ratings also reflect how clubs perform against opposition from other countries.

That helps explain why teams such as Benfica, PSV Eindhoven and Club Brugge are rated considerably higher despite Celtic’s domestic success.

Celta Vigo, who visit Celtic Park in the Europa League on Thursday, are not included in this particular table because Spanish clubs are excluded.

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