As Rangers fans prepare to adopt the Miss Havisham role after being jilted by the alacrity of Steven Gerrard’s return south of the border, it is worth posting a reminder of just how quickly things can move in a football context.
And while the much-maligned MSM take it in the neck whenever they question managers and players about potential moves – accusations of ‘unsettling’ managers/players abound in such circumstances – there are times when certain stories have a scent of immediate authenticity.
Brendan Rodgers’ departure took the Celtic support so aback that he has still not been forgiven by many. Level whatever you like about timing, and Rodgers was just 14 games away from a third domestic treble, but the reality was that for anyone who had been prepared to pay attention it wasn’t really a surprise at all.
If Celtic fans took considerable glee at the departure of Gerrard and the bulk of his backroom staff from Ibrox, it is worth posting a reminder that things stagnate when left to stand still. Celtic look like a team full of vim and vigour under Ange Postecoglou. The Greek Australian has restored a belief and a way of playing that has brought supporters onside; without that the tide becomes too big to swim against.
Yet his arrival was inauspicious, to say the least. A clear second choice, on the day that Postecoglou emerged as the frontrunner to assume the role the bulk of us were googling just who he was. That points to our own parochialism but it was reflected too in a lukewarm reception. Rodgers walked out into a movie star arrival on a sunny June evening, scarf held aloft and already felt the strength of a crowd willing him to succeed.
READ MORE: Ambition, Messiahs and £40 million: Can Celtic benefit from Steven Gerrard's Rangers exit?
Covid, of course, played a part, but as Postecoglou walked through the door it would have been a struggle to describe an audience in the car park. Small pockets of supporters mingled to catch a glimpse but there was little of the excited fanfare on offer for him that had been afforded Rodgers or the likes of Martin O’Neill.
As the Celtic support revel in the role of dishing it back out after having to suck it up for a while, the point is that Gerrard’s departure may mean something or nothing at all. Who Rangers now bring in and how the players react and whether there are finances to rebuild remains to be seen.
Celtic’s focus needs to be on the here and now. The recent emergence of a cohesive and fluent team has offered scope for encouragement in the drive to reclaim the title but there remain frailties too. Few can live with Celtic from middle to front in a domestic sense when the mood takes them but it would be dangerous to assume that a collapse from Rangers will gift them the title.
The strive to mould a championship winning team shouldn’t be shaped by who is in charge at Ibrox but rather what goes on that they can control.
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