Confident Celtic supporters are convinced they are building a side capable of challenging Rangers this season.
Boss Ange Postecoglou has captured hearts and minds in Glasgow's east end and their title tilt comes after a season where they finished a record 25 points behind their rivals.
The botched pursuit of 10 In A Row is consigned to history and there's proof this team can win silverware after their Premier Sports Cup Final triumph.
But a selection headache is looming ahead of a vital run of fixtures.
An international fixture double-header, for countries outwith Europe, is set to wreak havoc with a host of squad during a vital part of the season.
With Tom Rogic already picked by Australia, Celtic will be hoping get a rub of the green with their four Japanese stars in Kyogo, Daizen Maeda, Reo Hatate and Yosuke Ideguchi.
Japan are set to clash with China on January 27 before they take on Saudi Arabia on February 1 with both fixtures at home.
And any player who gets the nod will miss games against Hearts, Dundee United and Rangers and face a sizeable journey back to Scotland ahead of a clash with Motherwell.
Hajime Moriyasu is expected to name his strongest squad with qualifying for Qatar still very much up in the air.
Record Sport runs the rule over who is likely to receive a call. and who won't
Kyogo Furuhashi
There's no good news in the fact Kygo won't be travelling, as he almost certainly won't be playing for Celtic either. His hamstring injury, further aggravated against St Johnstone on Boxing Day, has proved more severe than the Parkhead side previously hoped.
If he was fit, Kyogo would be in Moriyasu's squad, no question, so there's no victory here as the club's talisman is set to miss out for club and country.
The 27-year-old will have plenty of big days to follow but it won't be this time around.
Daizen Maeda
The lightning-quick striker is one of two coin flips that Celtic are hoping both don't go against them.
On the face of it, Maeda's two caps for his country that came three years ago, have him down as more of an outsider than he really is.
The recent history is far more telling. The 24-year-old was part of the squad for the most recent qualifiers against Oman and Vietnam, and he was also originally called up for the Kirin Cup squad to face Uzbekistan.
But that was reversed due an overrule that stated only players currently playing club football in their homeland would make up the squad.
The fact Maeda was making the cut before Kyogo's injury likely isn't good news in hoping to keep him in Glasgow.
Maeda is a strong contender but Yuya Osako, Yoshinori Muto and Takuma Asano are ahead of him in the pecking order.
Yosuke Ideguchi
A slight quirk of the current situation, the man with the most caps (15) has no shot of making the squad.
That appears harsh but Ideguchi has not featured for his country since 2019, when he was regarded as one of the country's brightest stars.
However, as the player himself admitted, he wasn't pulling up trees with Gamba Osaka and that was on the back of his failed stint with Leeds.
Ideguchi is acutely aware he must find his form with Celtic before he can dream of a triumphant return to the squad.
Reo Hatate
Celtic supporters were cast by his spell on Monday and it's crazy to think after one game, but they cannot afford for the all-action midfielder to potentially join Maeda on a flight back to his homeland.
New signing Matt O'Riley fits the Postecoglou profile but it would be extremely hopeful to think the former MK Dons man will have a similar impact to the ex-Kawasaki Frontale star.
And Celtic's need for midfielders is pressing, Rogic will be on Australia duty, David Turnbull won't be back in time and the potential for Hatate to also be absent might be one too many for Celtic to cope with.
Postecoglou seems to have the knack of explaining his vision to potential recruits and a call in the direction of the Japanese FA might be a shrewd move.
Think about it, Hatate has left his homeland for the first time in his career, unlike, Ideguchi and Maeda, and he almost certainly won't start either match.
He remains uncapped but was a key member of the U23 squad and was also originally called up for Kirin Cup duty.
Is it worth asking a rising star, still settling into a new country, to fly across the world so soon after a life-changing decision?
And there's a compelling argument Hatate will be further along by starring in the white-hot atmospheres he'll face at Tynecastle and against Rangers.
