NOBODY believed it could be done once, but lightning may be about to strike twice for Ange Postecoglou, who now stands on the brink of repeating the feat of taking a team through 36 league matches without tasting defeat.
Just as he did at Brisbane Roar, Postecoglou’s current team will rack up that milestone as long as they don’t lose to Hearts at Celtic Park tomorrow, with their unbeaten run stretching way back to last September when they went down by a goal to nil at Livingston.
Postecoglou is candid enough to admit though that the similarities between the situation now and back then in 2011 as the Roar claimed the Australian club record begin and end with the number of games within the streak.
The salary cap in the A-League made the achievement almost impossible there, while expectation and pressure are the factors making it merely improbable here. Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic side went 69 domestic games unbeaten as recently as 2017, after all.
The current Celtic manager certainly hopes his own personal history doesn’t repeat itself, serving a warning to his players about complacency that comes from his own bitter experience, as he reflected on what happened after Brisbane’s record-breaking run came to an abrupt end.
"Everyone talks about the 36 games but they don't talk about what happened after it,” Postecoglou said. "We lost five straight away after that and it was a great leveller!
"Look, the run we are on is testament to the boys and the ability to overcome the challenges we had.
"What's more important right now for me is that we are undefeated in three this season and we have a fourth at the weekend. We need to focus on that and try to win it.
"There are huge expectations here. The Brisbane run was totally different as you aren't supposed to go on that kind of run in Australia. That's why it's a record for all sports, not just football.
"All the sports in Australia have some sort of equalisation or salary cap. They are designed to stop that kind of run happening, so it was a different scenario.
"At Celtic, we are expected to win. That's not new, it's embedded in the club and the players have really embraced that part of being here. They understand that when you represent Celtic you are expected to win, but we don't talk about that.
"What we talk about is expectation around our performances. If we get our football right, the results tend to take care of themselves.
"In that sense, I don't think the players have felt the same sort of pressure about winning, because they know that the real pressure lies in us performing at the levels we know we can.”
The Celtic players certainly didn’t appear to be labouring under the burden of that pressure as they tore Kilmarnock to shreds last weekend, with the smiles on the faces of the supporters matched by those on the field.
Postecoglou says his men deserve to enjoy such moments, because he knows how hard he has made them work in order to achieve them.
"Enjoyment and happiness in a sporting environment comes from working hard every day and being the best you can be,” he said.
"It's about enjoying the fruits of your labour. Being happy isn't about coming in and having a laugh every day. It's about working hard and being the best you can be. It's about realising all the dreams and ambitions you had as a kid - and that's the environment I want.
"This is definitely a good group, a close group, and they have good leaders in the dressing room. They all appreciate that they are part of a special football club. They should have a smile on their face as they are living their dreams.
"My role is to make sure that while they are smiling, they are also sweating.”
The majority of that sweat has been expended on the training field during this early part of the season, with Celtic enjoying the luxury of a full week of preparation for tomorrow’s match against Hearts, while their opponents travel to Glasgow off the back of a 2-1 first leg defeat against FC Zurich in St Gallen as they bid to reach the Europa League group stages.
Postecoglou won’t be taking Robbie Neilson’s men lightly though, giving credit to the Hearts manager for bulking up his squad to cope with the rigours of midweek European ties.
"Hearts are well in the Europa League tie and European football is going to be good for them,” he said.
"They had a really strong couple of years, getting promoted and then finishing third in the Premiership, well ahead of the pack and really consistent.
"They relied on a core group last year but Robbie has made a concerted effort to get a bigger squad this season.
"He knows that Europe does challenge you in that way and even on Thursday they picked up an injury [to Craig Halkett], but they have a bigger squad to cope now.
"Our games against them were good last year and this will be a good challenge.
"But it's about us and trying to improve our performances, which I think we have in every game.
"If we play our football, especially at home, we can be hard to stop.”
