I haven’t played a lot so I wanted an early touch ... I had to wait for a while

IGNORE the storied history of the fixture. Take away the riot of noise and colour. And disregard the hype and the hoopla. What remains is exactly what it was — one imperious side crushing a weak opponent now in grave danger of becoming a rival in name only.

The scale of Sunday’s humiliation for Rangers at the hands of Celtic was such that it’s legitimate to question how and when the Ibrox side recover from it. Ten times Brendan Rodgers has now tackled Rangers. Only twice has he had to settle for a share of the spoils.

Ever since the Glasgow giants first crossed swords on May 28, 1888, each has known periods of dominance. Yet the ability of one to bloody the nose of the other has been a constant. Until now.

Nothing illustrated the psychological headlock Celtic have their rivals in at the moment more than the way Graeme Murty sought to contain Rodgers’ men in the Scottish Cup semi-final.

Effectively playing three holding midfielders, the Rangers manager hoped to upset Celtic’s rhythm and supply by congesting the central area. Not in his worst nightmare could he have envisaged his players being so meek in the tackle, losing runners at will and making elementary errors. It was an unmitigated disaster.

Notwithstanding Celtic’s technical superiority and the expectation that they would prevail, what unfolded was extraordinary. A game of attack and defence normally only seen when lower league cannon fodder come to town. For 45 minutes, Craig Gordon could have relaxed on a deckchair.

‘I sat back and watched what unfolded,’ said the Celtic goalkeeper. ‘We were really dominant and it’s always pleasing to be with a side that does that.

‘There wasn’t much to do in the first half — just concentrate and keep myself in the game.

‘I’ve not played a lot of football, so I was looking for an early touch to settle and that didn’t appear.

‘Right through the first half I only had a couple of touches. Even when we are dominant normally, we circulate the ball at the back.

‘We didn’t need to as we were further up the pitch and the guys had it all under control. It was just about keeping concentration and to make sure when I was called upon, I was there to do it.’

The limited pre-match optimism among Rangers supporters emanated from various sources.

In the 0-0 draw Parkhead at the end of the year, they had missed the better chances. They managed to score two of them in the last game at Ibrox — albeit they were negated by the concession of three. Provided their side could perform as well offensively while retaining defensive discipline, they stood a chance.

More than anything, though, those enjoying a flutter on the Light Blues did so based on the law of probabilities; play someone often enough and eventually you’ll win.

For that to happen, Rangers would need almost every man registering top marks. It’s a scenario that still seems some way off.

‘It’s a hard thing to stay on top once you get there,’ added Gordon. ‘That’s what motivates us to keep going. When the big games come along, we have put in some good performances — especially at Hampden.’

A seventh straight victory for Rodgers at the national stadium was never in doubt from the moment Tom Rogic fired his side ahead. Callum McGregor’s strike after Russell Martin’s aberration killed the contest before the break. It was only after Moussa Dembele had rolled in the third from the penalty spot that Gordon was awoken from his slumbers to deny Alfredo Morelos with a point-blank save.

‘It was quite sharp — one of the best parts of my game is the reflex save and I’ve had quite a few this season,’ said Gordon.

‘It’s always good when you do it against your biggest rivals in a semi-final.’

For all the game was long gone, what happened next was quite something. Having denied Bruno Alves a headed consolation, the frame of Gordon’s goal was rattled by a spectacular slice from Mikael Lustig.

All Morelos had to do to give Rangers a crumb of comfort was lift the ball over the stricken goalie. As at Celtic Park in December and as when faced with Scott Bain at Ibrox last month, his nerve inside the six-yard box went to pieces.

‘I was still on the ground after Mika sliced the clearance off the bar,’ said Gordon.

‘I was trying to get myself in front of the line to make some sort of barrier.

‘The rest of the goal was quite open but I was just trying to give myself an opportunity to make a block and I stuck my left leg out to deflect it away.’

Had Morelos done what he’s paid to do, it would have been a minor footnote on the day.

As it happened, it became a microcosm of it; Celtic refusing to yield an inch. Rangers utterly hopeless. So much for Morelos’ boasts that he was destined to get one over on the Celtic keeper.

‘Yeah — I’d imagine he does hate the sight of me,’ smiled Gordon. ‘I’m sure he will get more chances. I’ll try my best to keep them out even if the law of averages says he will get one eventually.’