Rangers’ 19-point lead is not so much a cushion but a big, fat armchair
Commemoration was followed by wild celebration in Glasgow’s south side yesterday – with a slice of controversy throw in for good measure.
It was the 50th anniversary of the Ibrox Disaster, an occasion marked with fitting solemnity by all concerned.
Memorial wreaths were laid in the centre circle by both teams and a minute’s silence immaculately observed. The black cover of the programme carried the date January 2nd, 1971 along with the names of the 66 who died.
A little shy of two hours later, a different date in history was under discussion: 1908, the last time Rangers won three Old Firm league derbies in a row.
Few victories, if any, in the intervening 113 years could have been as important as this one.
By the time referee Bobby Madden blew for full time, Celtic’s dreams of winning 10-in-a-row lay in tatters. The Premiership title is now Rangers’ to lose.
Having beaten their great rivals home and away already in this campaign, Steven Gerrard’s men boast a 19-point lead at the top of the table.
Even allowing for Celtic’s three games in hand, that is not so much a cushion as a big, fat armchair.
Inevitably, by contrast, Neil Lennon’s position as manager of the chasers is now anything but comfortable.
Out of Europe, the Betfred Cup and with a monumental task facing his team in the league, the remainder of the 2020-21 campaign has a bleak look about it.
It will be scant consolation to Lennon that the key factor in losing this game was Nir Bitton’s red card: sent off for denying Alfredo Morelos a clear goal scoring opportunity in a fixture he never seems to score in.
Likewise, that the goal that decided it was cruel on his side.
James Tavernier’s corner in from the right took a major deflection off Callum Mcgregor’s shoulder and only a slight kiss off Joe Aribo on its way past keeper Vasilis Barkas and into the net.
Not that that stopped the Rangers midfielder partying like a man who had suddenly stumbled into a pre-covid Hogmanay party!
All of this didn’t matter. Not to Lennon when this was a game Celtic had to win,
The game kicked off with only around 200 people inside – around half a percent of the capacity of the old Glasgow ground.
When the action started, though, the players quickly got stuck in.
Alfredo Morelos had the Celtic dugout howling in protest with a rash challenge on Jeremie Frimpong.
Bobby Madden looked as if he was thinking about digging into his pocket for a yellow card but opted instead for leniency.
The positive stuff was very lively too.
Neil Lennon kept faith with his on-form front pair of Leigh Griffiths and Odsonne Edouard and the pair wasted no time in making their presence felt.
Edouard forced a double save from Mcgregor after a driving run up field from Callum Mcgregor with just a handful of minutes gone, but the Celtic striker was adjudged offside for the second.
If these saves were impressive, the one he pulled off to deny Griffiths, flying through the air to turn his shot onto the outside of his right hand post, was magnificent.
The home side had their moments. Frimpong blocked a Morelos shot that could have otherwise troubled Vasilis Barkas, but there was none of the midfield dominance which has been a feature of recent derbies.
Steven Gerrard’s change at halftime came further up the park with Kemar Roofe, who’d been fairly anonymous, making way for Ianis Hagi.
The new man definitely made a difference but whether it would have been enough to deliver a Rangers victory had Bitton not been dismissed, we will never know.
That moment came with about an hour gone and was followed with almost undue haste by Rangers goal.
After that, 10-man Celtic huffed and puffed but it was impossible to see them beating Allan Mcgregor who had looked imperious when it was 11 v 11.
“Hopefully in five months’ time it will be a huge win. I thought we were really, really poor in the first half and the 15 minutes before the sending off occurred,” the Rangers keeper said.
“We were a wee bit better after that but the win is the most important thing. I’ve no idea why but they looked hungrier first half but we managed to get the win.
“I wasn’t annoyed at having to be so busy. But I was annoyed at how bad we were. I keep repeating myself, the win is the most important thing and the boys dug it out well.”
Indeed. Quite how Celtic will dig themselves out of their current predicament is another question.