STRAP YOURSELVES IN FOLKS , THIS TITLE RACE IS GOING TO BE BONKERS
2019 ends with rancour and accusations flying... while the dawning of a new year is only going to crank up the pressure
INCREASINGLY, it seems like the fall-out from a nuclear explosion has nothing on an Old Firm game. The 48 hours after Sunday’s latest joust at Celtic Park were equally hostile and unpleasant as what came before.
There were allegations of racism, outrage at apparent throat-slitting gestures, demands for VAR, a citation for violent conduct and accusations that the referee had failed to notice he had booked the Celtic captain twice.
All of this in just the second league derby of the season. Where we’ll find ourselves when the matter is really on the line come the spring isn’t worth thinking about.
In the weeks ahead we can look forward to every detail being analysed and dissected to the minutest detail. Every refereeing decision will be held up in the court of public opinion, every break of the ball an example of Lady Luck shining more favourably on one side than the other.
Amid all recent muck-throwing, rancour and recrimination, a title race worthy of the name actually broke out. A supreme sporting contest which is undeserving of being hijacked by the bigots and the hard of understanding.
It is to be hoped, somewhat forlornly, that come May, the memory of what might well be the tightest league race in living memory is not sullied by other matters.
The best team should win the day. Which is not to say that other factors can’t sway the issue one way or the other. For starters, the Europa League adventures of the two sides may prove to be both a blessing and a curse.
Because as much as the knockout stage of the tournament offers revenue, kudos and a dream of going all the way, in terms of domestic football it really ought to come with a health warning.
Back in 2003, when Celtic blazed their way to the UEFA Cup final in Seville, understandably no one of the green and white persuasion was overly concerned with the knock-on effect.
But the strain of fighting on all fronts became evident in a 2-1 loss at Tynecastle just five days before Martin O’Neill’s side won against Boavista. Rangers held their nerve down the stretch to take the matter to a final day shoot-out and ultimately claimed the title by a single goal after a 6-1 hiding of Dunfermline.
Five years later, it was the Ibrox club’s turn to consider the price they paid for a valiant run to the final in Manchester.
As Walter Smith’s men took care of Sporting Lisbon and Fiorentina, they drew with Dundee United and Hibs and lost to Celtic. After losing to
Zenit St Petersburg, they drew at Motherwell.
Having enjoyed a seven-point lead in April, they travelled to Pittodrie on the final night trailing Celtic on goal difference. It was a game too far.
Might Neil Lennon (below, right) or Steven Gerrard (below, left) be left nursing the same kind of regrets on this occasion? We shall know soon enough.
But what can be said with certainty is that the side-effect of further progress in Europe is the added strain on the squad when minds turn to domestic affairs.
Drawn against FC Copenhagen, Celtic are at home to Kilmarnock then away to Livingston after the respective legs. Were Lennon’s men to progress against the Danes, the small matter of a visit to Ibrox then a home game with St Johnstone would await after their next continental jousts.
Having seen his side already beat Lazio home and away, the Celtic boss feels reaching the quarter-finals is a realistic initial objective. Were that to come to pass, his side would follow those two games with some tasty encounters against hitherto unknown top-six opponents.
For Rangers, a trip to St Johnstone and a home game with Hamilton will come into view after their matches with Braga. Were Gerrard’s men to make it through (potentially to face Celtic in the last 16 of the Europa, remember) that home game with Celtic then a trip to St Mirren would be next up on the agenda.
Given the near-perfect league form of both sides amid their Europa League group assignments prior to Christmas, it’s not inconceivable that ongoing European interest may have little impact on their Premiership campaigns.
But if history has taught us anything, it’s that one half of the divide will come a cropper — with potentially seismic consequences.
International football is another curve ball. When Scotland face Israel at Hampden on March 26 looking to set up a Euro 2020 play-off final with Norway or Serbia, the burden will fall on the green half of the city.
Ryan Christie, Callum McGregor and James Forrest will almost certainly start for Steve Clarke at Hampden. Scott Brown hasn’t yet ruled out an international return while Greg Taylor and Leigh Griffiths could be involved in some capacity.
Nir Bitton and Hatem Abd Elhamed are likely to feature in the opposing camp, while Mohamed Elyounoussi and Kristoffer Ajer should play the same night in Oslo.
Throw in Moritz Bauer (Austria), Tom Rogic (Australia) and possible Under-21s outings for Odsonne Edouard, Mikey Johnston and Jeremie Frimpong (for France, Scotland and Holland respectively), and Lennon could be sweating on the welfare of up to 14 players ahead of a treacherous trip to Easter Road the following weekend.
Gerrard won’t be a man without a care in the world over those six days but he’ll have fewer players involved and the majority of those will be engaged in friendlies.
While Ryan Jack will probably be the only Rangers player in Clarke’s squad, Northern Ireland stars Steven Davis and Jordan Jones will be hoping to get past Bosnia to set up a play-off final with either the Republic of Ireland or Slovakia.
That week will also see Alfredo Morelos travel to Colombia to face Venezuela before moving on to Chile, both on World Cup qualification duty. While other players at Ibrox could be called up, the fact that their prospective nations will only be occupied on friendly duty gives them an easier opportunity to bodyswerve national service.
It’s all hypothetical at the moment, of course. In isolation, one such call-up or a break of the ball which ensures another round in Europe may not seem hugely important in the wider scheme of things.
But in the final analysis such a minuscule matter may well prove to be the difference between finishing first and second in a title race that promises drama each time either side takes to the field.
It’s the essence of sport. Someone will win, someone will lose. It’s bonkers but it’s why we love it.