A REALITY CHECK FOR THE DAILY RECORD RANGERS CHEERLEADERS
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
It’s been a strange few days online for Celtic fans.
I made the sensible decision not to look at the comments section during our ACSOM post-match analysis of Celtic’s capitulation to Rangers.
Between interlopers from the dark side, and, rightly, angry Celtic fans venting their frustrations it was a very toxic sight to see.
However, I am aware of the general tone of the discourse that went on.
Rangers fans seem to believe that by drawing level on points with a Celtic side on the worst run of from in living memory, they are now “destined” to win the league this season.
Ever eager to appease Billy the Bear and his mates, The Daily Record latched onto this with one of the most fantastical, one-sided and frankly delusional pieces of writing I’ve read since my own piece on “Why Wilfried Nancy is no Russell Martin” went up a few weeks ago!
Daily Record Rangers Champions League Loophole Story is Utterly Laughable
So, to summarize, (once again I’ll read this tabloid p*sh so you don’t have to): if Rangers win the league, and neither Olympiakos nor Copenhagen win their respective leagues, and Rangers win their final two Europa League games at home to Ludogorets (possible) and away to Porto (there’s more chance of Wilfried Nancy having a CSC named after him), and Olympiakos and Copenhagen both fail not only to win their domestic leagues, but also fall short in their remaining two Champions League Group stage games, Rangers might go directly into the Champions League Group stage next season on account of their club coefficient.
So, I make that only about 4 miracles short of a nailed-on certainty. UEFA might as well just give them the £30 million now, right?
Even by the Daily Record’s low, low standards, this is an utter embarrassment to journalism.
Here’s the truth. Rangers are not now, suddenly, favorites to win the Scottish Premiership. Neither are Celtic. Hearts remain the league leaders and they are there on merit. In a season when all three clubs have seen their form go from the sublime to the ridiculous, this is a straight up 3-way fight for the title.
I fully believe Rangers and Hearts will still lose multiple games between now and the end of the season. Celtic aren’t exactly looking great in that department either, but Martin O’Neill previously managed to claw back a six-point deficit against Hearts in just one month. He now has a transfer window and the rest of the season to do that once again.
That’s the simplicity of the task that lies ahead. Close a six point gap, and be sure to put Rangers in their proper place in the remaining two matches we have against them, and we’ll win the league. It is really that straightforward. No looking to Greece or Denmark for help, no getting the calculator out to fantasize about co-efficient potentials. We just need to start winning football matches consistently.
Rangers will never have an easier time against Celtic than they did in the second half last weekend. Hearts, for all their achievements this season, have yet to face a Celtic team managed by Martin O’Neill.
They will be the ones making all the noise for the next few weeks, but make no mistake, the biggest threat to Celtic’s title defense this season still lies in Edinburgh.
Will Tony Bloom double down on his backing of Hearts so far?
Will Celtic’s board give Martin O’Neill the money to finally replace Kyogo with a proven goalscorer?
How many games will it take for Rangers to inevitably shoot themselves in the foot yet again and the boos to return to Ibrox?
I expect we’ll see answers to all of these questions in the next few weeks. The fate of the Scottish League title may well depend on the form these answers take.