Celtic Were Neither “Fortunate” Nor “Rode Our Luck” Yesterday Whatever The Hacks Say.

I was out after the game yesterday, after nearly a month of being ill in one way or another, so I didn’t see or hear much about the media reaction to the performance and the result until I woke up this morning.

I was almost tempted to double check that we won and that the margin had been three clear goals, such was some of the nonsense I was reading.

Some think we were fortunate.

Some think we rode our luck.

Some, who buttered up the Ibrox club from “responding to adversity” are attempting some contrast.

They won their game thanks to a penalty and one of those hit-and-hope shots; they were far from impressive.

We, on the other hand, won by three and never looked in any danger.

We are not going to win every game, not even every home game in the league, by five or six.

We are realists and we know that, but I never felt for one second yesterday that the three points were under serious threat. But it’s already clear that any game we don’t win by such a margin will generate these kind of headlines.

Even when we’re comfortable.

The football yesterday didn’t have the zip and the buzz of some previous games, but if we’d scored in the first half I really do think we’d have battered them. As it was, the difference between this team and the team from last season is that we never stopped taking the game to them, we never stopped putting their defence under pressure.

There was none of that steady build up nonsense; we relentlessly went forward, barely giving them room to breathe. We lacked a little of the cutting edge; our two first pick forwards aren’t in the team and Jota is still finding his rhythm.

For all that, I thought he looked exciting and talented.

Once he settles … formidable. Very formidable.

The media will give us credit only grudgingly.

They expect us to struggle next weekend; that’s why I’m looking forward to the game.

That it will give us a chance to scotch this nonsense about the away record as well is a bonus.

Yet even if we do get a victory, and an easy one, we’ll still hear the same crap about having proved nothing, about having won nothing, about having achieved nothing yet. That will be true, up to a point.

But I thought we deserved credit yesterday for sticking to the game-plan and having the belief that it would come good.

I never doubted it for a minute.