Motherwell manager Graham Alexander says he was perhaps naive in the Steelmen's 4-0 loss to the Hoops on Sunday.
Tom Rogic's double and a Liel Abada strike put the game beyond them by half-time and Daizen Maeda's goal after the break added insult to injury.
Alexander's men are still fourth in the Premiership ahead of a trip to Dundee United on Wednesday but the gulf in quality between the top two and the other 10 league sides was shown fully.
As Motherwell lost 4-0 to the league leaders, second-placed Rangers thrashed third-placed Hearts 5-0 shortly after the Fir Park battle.
'Well's boss admits he's tried to swim against the quality tide and while not quite coming out on top - losing 6-1 to Rangers on their last visit to Fir Park - he'll continue to strive for victory.
He said: "There is a massive gap between what those two clubs have compared to the rest. It shows in the squads and who they can bring off the bench.
"I've fought against it for 12 or 13 months. I have had a reality check about what it's about, but it won't stop us from trying to win next time we play either of them.
"Results against the top two won't define our season. It's about what we do against the teams around us in the league."
Alexander has also said he was responsible for the loss to Ange Postecoglou's men. It's something he vows to learn from but his team have to move on quickly in the race for European football.
The Motherwell manager added: "It was difficult to find positives as it was a really tough afternoon for us. I have to take responsibility for that more than the players do. I think I got things wrong.
"I have to take that on the chin. But what pleased me was the players never gave in. It was a really afternoon and when they score before half-time, you know it's going to be a difficult second half.
"To be fair to the players, they didn't throw in the towel. It's something we have to quickly put behind us and move on into the future."
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