Ronny Deila celebrated exuberantly with the Celtic fans after a 2-0 victory over Kilmarnock before declaring: "We are back on track."
The three points at Rugby Park take the champions to within one point of Aberdeen with a game in and led to the Celtic manager marching towards the visiting supporters behind the goal and punching the air repeatedly in delight.
He was similarly upbeat about the performance and the contribution of Kris Commons, brought back into the side for his first league start since November. The Scottish internationalist was outstanding as goals from Emilio Izaguirre and Stefan Scepovic ensured the Celtic squad can leave for the mid-season break in Gran Canaria with talk of a crisis silenced, at least for the moment.
"We are back on track again. We are going to continue winning games and if Aberdeen do the same then it is going to be a tight race all the way to the end," said Deila after Celtic won their first match in three in the league.
Of the title race that now involves Aberdeen, Dundee United and Hamilton Academical rubbing shoulders with his team, he said: "We are going to do our job. We can speak at the beginning of April, with six or seven games left, about who is challenging for the title.
Commons, who has not yet signed a contract extension with the club, played an influential role, hitting the bar on two occasions in the first half.
The Celtic manager said: "'Especially in the first half, Kris was very good - as was the team. He worked very hard. There were good reactions when we lost the ball and he created a lot of our chances. He did a lot of things well and that's what I wanted to see.
"Ninety minutes like that is what we want from Kris. If he does that, he is a very important player for us. The contract situation with Kris is the same as with [John] Guidetti and all the others. We are talking together and we will see if we can get agreement."
Guidetti was dropped to the bench at Rugby Park but Deila said: "It is just a little break for him. We know we are going to get John back on the best level again."
Allan Johnston, the Kilmarnock manager, was realistic about speculation linking the club with a loan move for Kris Boyd, the Rangers striker who has enjoyed two successful spells at the Ayrshire outfit.
"You're obviously looking to see what players are available. I don't know if Boydy's available or not, obviously he's still contracted to Rangers but you're looking at all good players, not just Boydy," he said.
Johnston, who believed his side had suffered last night because of a poor start, said of the Rangers striker: "Obviously, you are going to be interested if someone of his quality was made available. As it stands at this moment, we don't have any money to bring anyone in anyway."
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