CELTIC’S failure to defeat Dundee United in their William Hill Premiership match at Tannadice on Sunday did little, as annoying as it was for those hardy souls who had braved the wind and the rain and travelled to Tayside, to dampen the mood among their support.
It was only the second occasion this season the Parkhead club had been unable to register a win in the league and their lead at the top of the table remained commanding despite the 0-0 draw they were held to.
Their fans, who will turn out in numbers in the East End of Glasgow tomorrow afternoon fully expecting to see the defending champions dish out a Boxing Day bashing to Motherwell, were still in buoyant spirits as they made their way home.
It is fair to say, though, that Celtic’s minor slip-up at the weekend has given supporters of their Rangers counterparts a glimmer of hope.
Many followers of the Ibrox club declared the Scottish title race to be over when they were held to a 1-1 draw by United – a result which left them eight points behind their city rivals, who had a game in hand still to play, in the Premiership – in Govan last month.
Read more:
-
Rangers release VAR statement regarding reintroduction of officials
-
Manager breaks silence on status of Rangers transfer target interest
The draw came just two games after a 2-1 defeat to Aberdeen at Pittodrie which many observers felt had damaged their chances of finishing second in the top flight never mind first.
Since then, however, Rangers have experienced a distinct upturn in both form and fortunes. The wins over St Johnstone away and Dundee at home might only have been secured by a single goal. But grinding out such results is always important over the course of a long hard campaign.
Plus, the league triumphs against Kilmarnock at home and Ross County on the road have been highly impressive. Defensively, they have, as four consecutive clean sheets testifies, been excellent. In midfield, Nicolas Raskin has been outstanding and established himself as an automatic starter. Further forward, Hamza Igamane, Vaclav Cerny and Danilo have come to the fore.
Philippe Clement’s men might have lost the Premier Sports Cup final to Brendan Rodgers’ charges at Hampden earlier this month following a shootout. But their all-round display was a vast improvement on the one they produced at Parkhead at the start of September.
Would the final outcome have been different if they had been awarded a penalty – as SFA head of refereeing Willie Collum last week admitted they should have been - in the second period of extra-time when Celtic centre-half Liam Scales pulled Cerny inside his own area?
If James Tavernier and his team mates can prevail in their first competitive Premiership fixture against their age-old adversaries since 2021 it will, providing they have both won the two games they have in the build-up, leave them just six points adrift.
That, of course, is a massive if. Rodgers has now lost just one of the 20 games against Rangers which he has been involved in during his two spells as a manager in this country. His opposite number Clement has failed to triumph against Celtic even once in six attempts.
The experienced Northern Irishman – who spent around the same amount of money on one new recruit during the summer transfer window than the Belgian did on 11 – has a wealth of quality options at his disposal in every position and can deal with any injuries or suspensions which may arise in the months ahead.
Still, you will, if you know your history, be well aware that league leaders in strong positions have seen comfortable cushions evaporate in the blink of an eye during the run-in in the past.
Celtic fans celebrated as if they had retained the title after their team had beaten Rangers 2-1 at Ibrox in the final Old Firm match of the 2004/05 campaign and moved five points clear of their nearest challengers with just four matches remaining.
Read more:
-
Celtic outcast suitors send take-it-or-leave-it offer for star loanee
-
Referee David Coote will not appeal against termination of contract
-
As Ange gets mad at the media, an Irish hero jumps to his defence
But they lost to Hibernian at home the following weekend and to Motherwell away on the final day and ended up being pipped to first place by a point.
Alex McLeish’s side had themselves had squandered a nine point lead with six games left two years before that. They looked to be home and hosed after overcoming Partick Thistle 2-0 at home at the start of April. But they went into the final day trailing their age-old adversaries on goal difference and it took a 6-1 triumph over Dunfermline for them to lift the silverware.
The Rangers players exhibited great resolve to come from behind twice and force extra-time in the climax of the Premier Sports Cup final. But do they have the mental strength needed to catch and overtake Celtic in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign? There is no margin for error and the heat will be well and truly on every time they fall behind or fail to break the deadlock.
They collapsed after they entered the closing stretch last term just as they were looking like they were going to pull away. They failed to beat Celtic at home and then lost to Ross County and drew with Dundee away in the space of 11 days. The likes of Jack Butland, Tavernier, John Souttar, Dujon Sterling, Cyriel Dessers and Ross McCausland have to prove their mettle.
But the arrival of Robin Propper, Jefte, Connor Barron, Cerny, Nedim Bajrami and Igamane has energised them. The summer signings have slowly but surely grown in confidence and influence. Off the park, too, there is greater stability with the appointment of Patrick Stewart as chief executive and Fraser Thornton as chairman
Can they continue to progress and gain the upper hand on leaders who have impressed onlookers greatly in the past five months and are on the cusp of qualification for the Champions League knockout rounds play-offs?
The smart money is on Celtic to prevail for a fourth consecutive season come May. But a derby victory would be important psychologically for Rangers. It would, too, raise the possibility that the league might, just might, not be a one-sided procession this term.
