How settled and familiar the SPFL Premiership table suddenly looked after all the turbulence, noise and drama which had swirled around Aberdeen. 

Celtic are where everyone expected them to be all along: at the summit for the first time this season and the first time under Ronny Deila, and he wasn't shy about marking the fact. A wee jig, waving his arms in front of the away section at Pittodrie, he celebrated with his team as if a milestone had been reached. Celtic have lost once in 15 games and won their last four in the league. The backbone of a title-winning campaign is slowly crystallising.
Pittodrie tested them, it really did. They were a goal down at one point, a man down at another, but even with 10 men they saw off a gutsy Aberdeen challenge thanks to a 90th-minute winner. It was the sort of day which cements a new manager's relationship with supporters and Deila was glowing afterwards. A late red card for Scott Brown, and another for Shay Logan in the tunnel after the game, confirmed that passions ran high. Celtic knew they were in a game all right. Aberdeen had the chances to finish them off but wastefulness, poor refereeing and slack defending conspired to sink them. Adam Rooney scored against the run of play and Stefan Johansen equalised before half-time. Aberdeen felt referee Alan Muir missed something in the build-up to that goal and again at Celtic's winner. Still, the ease of Virgil van Dijk's finish, from a corner dropped into the goalmouth, sickened them.
As Aberdeen-Celtic games go it was a lively, eventful addition. Sensibly, Aleksandar Tonev was nowhere to be seen. A chant of "there's only one Shay Logan" referenced the race row which erupted when the teams met in September. Tonev has appealed against the seven-game SFA ban for racially abusing Logan and Deila decided he could do without the Bulgarian among the five changes he made from Thursday night's draw against Astra Giurgiu. Logan - baited by the away support, cheered by the home stands - had a good game. His red card was unseen but clearly his dander was up and he was sent off for foul and abusive language towards one of the assistant referees.
Amid these bubbling controversies the football was fascinating. Could Aberdeen cope with John Guidetti? Ash Taylor is a mountain in defence and along with Mark Reynolds they dealt with most of the balls Celtic played towards their box. After five goals in nine appearances Guidetti had one of his quietest games. James Forrest, back from hamstring trouble for his first appearance in almost three months, was rusty and went off after an hour. Johansen scored and impressed in flashes, as he had in midweek, but Celtic's attack lack menace and cohesion without Kris Commons. Van Dijk and Jason Denayer were commanding at the back and the midfield became a scrappy, even battleground. One of Willo Flood's hamstrings went in the opening minutes but in Barry Robson one terrier replaced  another.
The atmosphere was feisty. There was a hubbub of noise from the Celtic section during the minute's silence for Remembrance Sunday, with individual shouts, catcalls and other fans trying to shut them up, and during the game the home support were taunted on political grounds for voting no. All this, with a big crowd and bright sun, kept things simmering.
Aberdeen felt two first-half calls went wrongly in Celtic's favour. Brown shouldered Peter Pawlett off the ball as he was running towards the box. Pawlett wanted a penalty but it looked just outside. Muir didn't give even a free-kick. Much later, Charlie Mulgrew fouled Niall McGinn in the centre but Muir played on and within seconds Celtic had scored. Emilio Izaguirre then Anthony Stokes, back after a midweek virus, worked the ball to Johansen and he clipped it over goalkeeper Scott Brown despite Reynolds' desperate tackle attempt.
That was a deserved equaliser for Celtic, who had edged possession before falling behind to one of Aberdeen's rare threats. Lukasz Zaluska should have done better with Andy Considine's firm low shot but when it bounced off him Adam Rooney hooked a shot which squirted inside the far post. Van Dijk and Johansen forced saves from the Aberdeen goalkeeper before half-time. After it, Aberdeen took the initiative and McGinn put a shot and a header wide, and hit a post with a low drive. Their momentum grew when Celtic's Brown was sent off. Already booked for a foul on Pawlett, holding McGinn with nine minutes left meant a red card was inevitable. Aberdeen did everything to capitalise, they went for it, but the game turned on two Celtic corners in the 90th minute, both of which Aberdeen disputed. Scott Brown dived low to a Mulgrew shot but was denied getting a touch as it skipped wide. From that corner, Aberdeen's clearance appeared to hit Mikael Lustig on the way out but a second corner was given. Johansen delivered it to the far post where it dropped at Van Dijk's feet. The big fella had one of his classier afternoons and embellished it by ushering the ball over the line for the winner.