CELTIC extended their unbeaten run in meaningful games against Rangers to 12 and moved five points clear of their city rivals in the William Hill Premiership at Parkhead this afternoon thanks to goals from Japanese duo Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi and a Callum McGregor wonder strike.
Brendan Rodgers’ team, who went into the opening Old Firm derby of the 2024/25 campaign on the back of an impressive four match winning run, dominated Philippe Clement’s side for the majority of the 90 minutes and could and really should have prevailed by even more.
It is very hard to see - with new signing Arnie Engels, the Belgian midfielder who joined from Augsburg for a club record £11m fee on deadline day, coming on to make his debut - how the Scottish champions can be prevented from retaining the title come May on this evidence.
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Rodgers has now been in the dugout for 19 of these games and his men have won 15, drawn three and lost just one of them. His counterpart Clement, meanwhile, is still looking for his first triumph after 11 months in the country.
Here are five talking points from another one-sided showdown between the Glasgow clubs.
Profligate attack, dire defence
Clement had vowed after Rangers’ emphatic win over Ross County aty Hampden last weekend that his team would go “flat out” for victory at Parkhead and would not “park the bus”.
He was true to his word. The visitors got in the faces of their hosts from kick-off, applied pressure high up the park and their opponents struggled to get into their rhythm as a result.
They passed up two excellent scoring opportunities during the early exchanges. Cyriel Dessers should have done better after James Tavernier found him in the Celtic penalty box. The striker cut inside Liam Scales, but his shot was weak and was hit straight at Kasper Schmeichel. Rabbi Matondo then headed a Tavernier cross wide.
It is unlikely the final outcome would have been any different if Rangers had managed to convert one of those opportunities given what followed. Still, their lack of ruthlessness made their task far harder.
If the defending was poor at the opener if was unforgivable at the second. Furuhashi received the ball from Greg Taylor in acres of space, advanced forward unchallenged and then placed a shot beyond Jack Butland. Why wasn’t he closed down sooner? Whit was the keeper daein? It was woeful stuff.
Maeda magic
The Japanese internationalist had the simplest of tasks to break the deadlock. Still, the man who had netted a double when he was played through the middle in the absence of his compatriot Furuashi against Hibernian last month was very much in the right place at the right time.
The winger went close to adding a second later in the first half when he got on the end of a Paulo Bernardo corner and glanced a header just past the left upright. He continued to probe for an opening right up until the final whistle.
It is not, though, just in the final third where the industrious wide man excelled. He was outstanding defensively too. He dropped deep and disposed Vaclav Cerny and Dessers in his own half as the away side were attempting to launch attacks. He epitomises what this Celtic side is all about.
Derby day assassin
It is incredible to think that Furuhashi’s mentality was questioned after he failed to find the target in his first four encounters with Rangers.
The £4.5m forward has now netted eight times in 11 appearances against the Ibrox club. He exhibited great composure and no little technique to put Celtic two ahead five minutes before half-time this afternoon.
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Adam Idah showed he is a man for the big occasion when he was on loan last term by netting against Clement’s charges at both Ibrox in the Premiership and Hampden in the Scottish Cup final. However, he has some way to go to replicate his fellow forward’s success in the world-famous fixture.
Furuhashi was linked with a move to Manchester City in the final days of the transfer window and Celtic fans were understandably delighted that no bid was received. He will once again be key for them this term.
Quality gulf
The transfer business which Celtic conducted in the final days of the transfer window underlined they are operating at a far higher level off the park than Rangers. But that is true on the field of play too. They were sharper, smarter, hungrier, slicker and more clinical today.
Luke McCowan made his bow for his boyhood heroes when he took over from Reo Hatate at the same time as Idah replaced Furuhashi. James Forrest, meanwhile, made his 500th appearance when Kuhn was substituted. But it was McGregor who wrapped up the three points.
He fired, with the help of a slight deflection off the outstretched foot of Dujon Sterling, beyond Butland from the edge of the Rangers’ penalty box to take his tally for the season to three. The skipper was a deserved Man of the Match when referee John Beaton brought an end to hostilities.
A diminished derby
Celtic were, with no cast-iron guarantee that reconstruction work on the Copland Stand at Ibrox would be completed when they have to travel to Govan in January, quite correct not to allow away supporters in to Parkhead this afternoon.
However, the absence of Rangers fans from the ground once again had a detrimental impact on the atmosphere and made for a strangely unsatisfying experience.
The tens of thousands of Hoops diehards who filed through the turnstiles certainly made their presence felt. They were in fine voice long before kick-off. The giant tifo which the Green Brigade unfurled before kick-off, too, added to the colour and spectacle of the occasion.
But football, to paraphrase Jock Stein, without away fans is nothing. The sooner the situation can be resolved the better.
