GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - MARCH 14: Celtic's Hyunjun Yang (L) celebrates scoring to make it 3-1 with teammate Tomas Cvancara during a William Hill Premiership match between Celtic and Motherwell at Celtic Park, on March 14, 2026, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Paul Devlin/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Celtic social media does tend to verge on the hysterical at times, so it is hardly unexpected to see people losing their minds over the fact that the Ibrox club came back from 2-0 down at Falkirk to win, and to win comfortably.
Although, if you actually watched the game, there was not much of it, outside the spell in which they scored their first four goals (a spell lasting 16 minutes) where they looked especially comfortable or especially good.
Am I concerned that they came back and won the game? No. Am I concerned that they scored six goals? No.
We know they are capable of scoring goals. So are Hearts. Any talk that we might have to start scoring more in order to deal with goal difference does not interest me one bit. We are either going to win this on points or we are not going to win it. Goal difference is not going to be the deciding factor here. It will not hinge on that.
Falkirk conceded their first goal today at the worst possible time. It is always bad when you have a 2-0 lead and you concede just before the end of the first half.
I do not know how many times I have seen a side do that and then concede again right at the start of the second.
At that point, all the work you put in for the first forty-plus minutes feels as if it has slipped away. It feels as if it is over. It feels as if the effort has been wasted. Then to concede a third is psychologically crushing. That is why it is such a bad moment to lose a first goal when you have a two-goal cushion going into half-time.
A lot of nonsense is being talked, has been talked, and absolutely will be talked over the next few days about how our opponents have more firepower than we do. Therefore, they are favourites to win the league, while we are labouring to put together wins and results. There is an extent to which this can look true.
There is a kind of instinctive feel to it that makes people think the assessment is beyond question, that it is accurate beyond reproach.
But what if I told you it is not accurate? What if I told you it is not beyond reproach? There is a simple test for all those who are not stats geeks.
Without looking at the league table as it currently stands, ask yourself this and answer it honestly: prior to this weekend, how many more goals had the Ibrox club scored than us in the league? While you are pondering that, ask yourself another question: how many more goals than Celtic had Hearts scored in the league before this weekend’s games kicked off?
However you answered those questions, here are the answers.
Prior to the weekend, the Ibrox club had scored exactly two more goals than we had.
Now, today has changed that.
But before the weekend, it was two more goals.
Hearts, who scored three yesterday, are still one goal behind what we have scored in the league. You would not believe that if you listened to some of the talk around how we are the side short of firepower, but it remains true no matter what spin people put on it.
The only place where we look grossly deficient is in comparison to our own high standards.
That’s where you notice the real difference.
Does it change anything?
No, not really. It may change perception, but this is all about perception.
The people saying Celtic could not have done what the Ibrox club did today must live in a kind of casual ignorance, because at Kilmarnock we did come back from 2-0 down at half-time to win the game. At Ibrox, in what was probably an even more impressive feat, we came back from 2-0 down, looking absolutely dead and buried, to get the draw. That draw looks increasingly important as we get closer to the end.
We have not been brilliant. That is a fact. There is no question about it. But the idea that we are facing two sides with colossally better firepower than we have is risible nonsense.
Goals come from all over a team.
So, when the newspapers today weigh in on the idea that we might have to depend on something other than our strikers to get us over the line in this race, they are not telling us anything we do not know. More importantly, they are not asking us to do anything we have not already been doing.
It is not our strikers who have us sitting in a position where we can still win this title. It is the rest of the team, and they have been doing it all season long.
They have done it in the face of Braga and Shankland at Hearts. They have done it in the face of Chermiti and Miovski at Ibrox.
This is all about who can hold their nerve.
This is all about who can gut it out.
I keep saying this because it matters: we have been over the line before. Again and again and again. The football is not brilliant, but right now it is enough.
None of us was happy with the performance yesterday, but all of us were happy with the result. We got the same three points yesterday that the Ibrox club got today. We just will not be surrounded by the same hype.
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If you think our firepower is compatable with theirs, your delusional. Highly unlikely we wouldve come back from 2 – 0 down at Falkirk. And scored 6 ?! Not a chance ! And cvancera for a start, is nothin more than a wasted jersey.
The reason those stats you cite are surprising JF is perhaps down to the fact that in the last 3 crucial games, we have mustered a total of 3 goals whereas Sevco have now scored 14 goals in the last 3 games.
As you know momentum is a factor in football and as far as scoring goals is concerned the current momentum does not favour us.
I take some hope from your point that we have the experience and know how to win the league and the pretenders don’t. And we are determined bunch in patches this season when we need to be.Although I think the horrific capitulation at Tannadice the other week told me a lot about how determined some of us are yet many are not. Or perhaps are but just don’t have the quality.
We don’t have a striker and are playing without any tactics.
We struggled badly yesterday at home against a team trying to avoid relegation …
That game today was changed dramatically by two VAR calls or should I say non calls, The 1st one was the more questionable decision as far as I was concerned. Last week Leonard of Hearts was red carded on the advice of the VAR official for a foul on Muirhead of Livingstone around the half way line with the Livvy forward having lots of grass and no Hearts player between him and the goal and with a clear run to goal if he was quick enough. Today With the score 2-0 in Falkirks favour The Rangers L/B Meghoma cynically brings down a Falkirk forward who has intercepted the ball in Falkirks half with admittedly a long way to the Rangers goal, but not a Rangers player between him and Butland. What the difference was between last week and this week I’d love Willie Collum to tell us. Consistency is definitely something refereeing in Scotland aint got.
As far as the non decision of a goal kick at The Rangers 1st goal goes it just showed what a cheap example of VAR we’ve got when there was no camera to prove one way or another whether that ball was out. I do agree with john McGlynn the young Falkirk team showed their inexperience by not playing to the whistle.
Falkirk were as bad defensively in the 2nd half as they were as gooid attacking in the 1st half.
I’m hoping that The Rangers players think they’re World beaters now, because they aren’t, the only worrying thing is, neither are Celtic or Hearts.
Hate to say it but Rohl at least changed to two up front in the 2nd half and that seemed to spook the Falkirk defence.
Starting our games with two wide players is a luxury we can’t afford at the moment, if we lose control of the M/F our two wide men become passengers.
Surely it’s time for us to ditch the rigid 4 3 3 formation and try something different, maybe Sunday’s Cup Semi Final would be a good place to start.
I think youre talking nonsense James
Our forward line is PISH
Cvancara hasn’t a fucking clue and runs around like a demented goat..and who else is there? Ineanacho???
Where are the turkeys we signed in January?
The fact our leading goalscorer is a midfielder playing out of position tells it all.
Totally agree with Kevcelt. If we go 2-0 nil down, we are fucked. Not a chance in hell we will come back and score 6 with the dross we have up front
I dont watch the nasties so have no idea hiw they played but at least they are scoring goals. We can only manage one – from a midfielder- against a team who are what???? 10th?
Our “firepower” is like a wet fart..shite, stinking and needs wiping away
Sorry BigStevie, but Nygren never was, is, or will be a midfielder in his lifetime.
All you need to do is check his career prior to Celtic or with the Sweden national team to figure out that he’s always been a hybrid winger ala Nicholas Khun, or a no. 10.
It’s all part of the lack of structure at Celtic Park that the board can scout and sign a player based on those characteristics and then choose to play him out of position, then compound it by blaming him for not delivering in said position.
Hi DannyGal, what i was meaning was Nygren is being played out of position by being put in the midfield. I know he isnt a natural midfielder
Probably the most deluded article you have written for a long time. The zombies are scoring plenty in a time where pressure is at its highest. We are scrapping over the line. We do no look a threat. I think by the comments you have received on this article you have read the situation very badly. We are by far the worst creative and scoring team out the 3 going for the title. We are by far the worst out the 3 carrying momentum. Your article after our game yesterday was spot on. To go from that to arguing we are on a level in terms of goal threat as our 2 league rivals is utterly shocking and worrying. Hopefully you’ve just had a few too many beer tonight James
James – a hat tip to you for the quality of your writing however you let yourself down with the content of your analysis of what you see on the pitch. We are turgid in our play and continually struggle to make clear chances – for example, we had 7 shots on target at home against the team in 10th yesterday, Sevco scored 6 goals away against the team in 6th.
We can still win this league with guts and determination from our many good players. One game at a time and forget this “statement victory” nonsense – 3 points is all that matters. As they say in golf, there are no pictures on a scorecard, just how many shots.
Personally I would rest McGregor next weekend and try something different in terms of tactics – it would give others something to think about in terms of how we might play in the final five league games.
You’re in lala land fella. We might still win this league but it won’t be through scoring a boatload of goals it will be ugly.
I hope we don’t end out losing it on bloody goal difference again…
I’m still suffering post traumatic fuckin stress from 2003 !
Sorry BigStevie I see what you meant now is the same as what I was saying!
Sorry James, I have enjoyed your stories for many years but this one was just mad nonsense. 7 shots on goal for the entire match on Saturday. Read the room on the best comments section of any Celtic blog. We are rank rotten up front.