For Celtic today is just about three points. The game in midweek is bigger.

Has it really been two weeks since the last game? In some ways, it feels like a lot longer than that, and I’m not the only one who thinks so. Barry Ferguson said the same recently, but for very different reasons. Time drags during international breaks—it always has.

It doesn’t really matter what form your team is in, it drags.

But the way it drags depends on recent results. For Celtic fans, these two weeks have felt interminably long because we just want to see our team again. For fans across the city, it’s dragged on because they’ve had nothing to do but reflect on how bad their team is, the state they’re in, and the crisis that’s swallowing them at the moment.

Looking back, two weeks ago, I was calling for a statement victory—and we got exactly that. We got the performance and the win we needed, the one that left them with no hiding place. Their manager claims the game was closer than it seemed, and Souness has echoed the same tired nonsense. But most people see it for what it was. They were a mess, and it’s forced them to take a long, hard look at where their club is now and where it might be heading.

That psychological blow I mentioned has hit them hard, like a sledgehammer. They’re left with regrets, fear, and a million questions, none of which have easy answers. Most of their fans have already written off the season, and all the talk now is about how they can recover in time to make even a token effort for next year. We need to be wary of that kind of talk. We won’t count our chickens. The team will stay focused, and Brendan will make sure that complacency doesn’t creep in.

But we’ve made our statement. It’s done what I hoped it would do—not just for us, but to them. As we move forward, it’s crucial to remember that most matches will just come down to the points. The game two weeks ago was different, not because of who the opposition was but because our closest rivals needed to be hit hard, their morale shattered. And we’ve done that. Mission accomplished.

Today’s game is different. We don’t need another statement victory. Sure, it would be nice to play this team off the park, score five or six, and pile even more pressure on Naismith, maybe even drive him closer to losing his job. But ultimately, the only thing that matters today is the win. The statement was made two weeks ago, and to be blunt, we have bigger concerns now.

The Champions League game coming up in midweek is just as important as this one, maybe even more so. It’s important to remember that we get £4 million for winning the league title in Scotland but £2.5 million for winning a single game in the Champions League.

We should be aiming to win all of our home matches, and we should definitely target getting a result in Zagreb if nowhere else. I’m not ruling out getting a result elsewhere, of course, but it is better to be realistic with our expectations.

But keep that number in mind; £2.5 million per win. That’s huge.

That’s why three points in midweek are essential. And with that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some squad rotation today. I won’t be shocked if key players are left on the bench. We’ve strengthened well during the window, and we’ve got good players who can step in. We’re no longer reliant on poor backups, and Brendan has improved several players, like Nicolas Kuhn. This gives us a good chance no matter what team we put out.

Brendan will take today’s game seriously, of course. If we win, we move eight points clear of our so-called rivals and put them under massive pressure for tomorrow. Pressure that they don’t tend to handle very well. But we should stop focusing on them when it comes to team selections. Let’s be honest—there is no rivalry worthy of the name right now.

Our focus should shift to Europe. That’s where the real money is, that’s where our future lies, and that’s where the real glory is to be grabbed. So, I won’t be surprised—or disappointed—if we rest key players today with Europe in mind. In fact, I’d be rather pleased to see us showing where our true focus lies now. The Champions League, and the bigger picture.