Ange Postecoglou faced a very different rival in this title race. Expectation.
In year one, the new manager didn’t have it from outside. Taking over with a 25-point deficit, few gave him a hope of doing what he did and wresting the title back from Rangers. This time around, a contrasting story. Burden and expectation were placed upon him entering the campaign as champions. It’s what makes this season’s surge to the title even more impressive than his first.
That may seem an odd statement when you consider the state of the place when he walked in. But with a target on their backs, Celtic rose to the challenge and responded spectacularly. Postecoglou’s men were up and running as soon as it started and, to be perfectly honest, there was little doubt where the title was destined to end up from the minute they hammered Rangers 4-0 on their own patch last September. Only six games had gone after that comprehensive win but, with a five-point lead already in the bag, Postecoglou’s men had a grip which barely loosened.
Rangers ended the campaign in a bit of turmoil after getting rid of manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst having fallen nine points behind going into the Qatar World Cup. But van Bronckhorst was only paying a price for the brilliance of Postecoglou’s team and, to some extent, Michael Beale is suffering much the same fate now.
At one stage, Celtic’s nearest challengers were on course to reach the 100-point mark for the season and still they weren’t going to catch the champions. That’s down to the Parkhead team being ruthless and relentless, with their manager getting it right on and off the park.
Building from a position of strength is a must. They say you go backwards by standing still and Celtic had to kick on last summer. Cameron Carter-Vickers and Jota had already won a title but they were loanees and the outlay to make the deals permanent was a crucial step.
Just over £12million is a lot of money for two players in the Scottish game but these deals needed done and both paid off. With those two secured, major surgery was not required. It was more a case of building the squad with the likes of Alexandro Bernabei and Sead Haksabanovic adding strength and quality to the ranks.
Aaron Mooy fitted into that category too and blossomed, especially when Callum McGregor was out for a spell injured. Mooy was not a signing which captured the imagination of the supporters at the time but, once again, a shrewd piece of business.
Champions League football was another complication for the manager. While trying to make an impact at the highest level in Europe, big decisions had to be made on the domestic front in terms of team selection.
It backfired just the once. When St Mirren managed to beat Celtic in Paisley. Many felt, myself included, that defeat was down to just too many alterations being made for the one game.
But Postecoglou did not waver from that approach. For big games during that unrelenting spell of fixtures, at places such as Tynecastle last October, he changed half an outfield team.
Individuals stepped up to the mark and ensured nothing more was conceded in the title race even at a time when stars such as Kyogo Furuhashi were getting a rest. Those decisions and brave calls meant that, come the turn of the year, there was plenty in the tank to keep pushing ahead.
January was another tricky period. Losing Josip Juranovic and Giorgos Giakoumakis could have been a big blow at a key time. The Croatian and the Greek did great jobs for the club during their time and I certainly felt it could have been a risk to have them exit mid term.
But, again, Postecoglou’s planning and nous in the market offset any concerns or fears about what may happen. Alistair Johnston was signed and his arrival meant people barely noticed Juranovic had gone. Oh Hyeon-gyu has made an impact up front and is content to be making most of his appearances from the bench when Giakoumakis needed starts at this stage of his career.
Tomoki Iwata and Yuki Kobayashi look as if they have what it takes to deliver at Celtic and the squad ended January stronger. That is testament to the work done off the park. On the field, it just kept flowing. It would need nine pages to detail the contributions made by them all at various stages.
Guys have sacrificed themselves for the cause. Matt O’Riley stepped back to be the midfield anchor when McGregor was out. Mooy changed position to great effect, shifting up the pitch.
Reo Hatate was even playing, and shining, at right-back at one point over the festive period with Anthony Ralston and Juranovic out and Johnston’s paperwork yet to be cleared. Postecoglou knitted it all together and the team did it with style, racking up goals and points with ridiculous ease.
On the occasions when they had to roll up their sleeves, and there were a few, they were able to get tough and dig it out. Postecoglou has the squad singing from the same song book and the supporters are right behind him because he conducts himself with some class into the bargain.
Unlike the previous year when he was starting out, this was a season at Celtic where the manager had a high bar to match. Not only did he do so, he and his team were able to go even higher with a desire and attitude which comes from the top.
Postecoglou said on the final day of last season that Celtic would return bigger, better and stronger because they weren’t going to stop. He was true to his word. They didn’t. And chances are they will go again even faster next term.
