One of them is in for a nasty surprise. That’s probably the only certainty ahead of Sunday’s Viaplay Cup Final at Hampden Park now that the gloves are about to come off in this burgeoning rivalry between Ange Postecoglou and Michael Beale.
With levels of self confidence and belief soaring on either side of the old divide, finally this phoney war is about to come to an explosive end with real shots being fired. And when it’s all done and dusted, one of these managers is about to emerge from the smoke to find himself in a very different place.
Wishful thinking, you see, can be a dangerous thing. And right now, fans of both of these incompatible neighbours are guilty of indulging in it at the same time. From Celtic’s perspective, there appears to be an unwillingness to acknowledge the improvements that Beale has been busy carrying out on the other side of the fence.
With a shrug of the shoulders and a puff of the cheeks the general consensus is, ‘So what? He’s still miles behind from Big Ange.’ Which may or may not be the case. But, if they’re wrong, then it will smack of presumptuousness and complacency.
Meanwhile, in the blue corner, there’s a burning desire, almost a neediness, for Beale to prove himself to be the real deal. And, should he end up on the wrong end of a hiding at Hampden this weekend, then this surge of optimism might be rendered as borderline delusionary.
Either way, a new reality is about to set in for one set of supporters and it’s unlikely to go down too well. That’s the problem with the raising of expectations, especially in this part of the world. It tends to bring with it a heightened sense of entitlement.
The hissyfits and tantrums which erupted in the Parkhead car park all because Celtic didn’t win a tenth successive league title might feel like a toe curling distant memory now that Big Ange is at the wheel. But they should serve as a reminder all the same of how quickly the crowd can turn when it doesn’t get what it wants.
And Beale got an unwelcome glimpse of that for himself at the weekend when a section of militants in his own club’s support unfurled a banner at Livingston which must have left the manager scratching his head in utter disbelief.
“Two trophies in eleven years. Uphold the standards that matter”. There was an almost threatening, ever so slightly sinister undertone to this message which was directed at the very man responsible for rescuing their club from a campaign engulfed in crisis.
Talk about entitlement?
Let’s forget, for a minute, that Rangers have actually lifted two trophies in two years, while also reaching a European final less than 12 months ago. The numbers that really matter are those Beale has managed to muster in his first three months in the job.
With 13 wins from 14 games in charge Beale is quietly working wonders which is precisely why Rangers will make the short trip to the south side of Glasgow on Sunday fuelled by a genuine sense of belief.
In his first round of sparring with Postecoglou back in January, he came within a couple of minutes and a late strike from Kyogo Furuhashi of making it 14 from 14. And, along the way, he’s taken Rangers into the first domestic cup final of the season while also navigating a passage into the quarter finals of the Scottish Cup.
Of course, it was that fifth round win over Partick Thistle which has elicited such a spiky response from the fans, all because Beale did the classy thing by allowing the Championship minnows to help themselves to an equaliser at a time when the tie was still in the balance.
When Beale explained his thinking afterwards and referred to the standards the club was built on, the Englishman was effectively giving a head nod to the days when Rangers used to be a great deal more prolific in terms of trophy lifting. And, furthermore, a sign of his desire and intent to re-establish that same sort of superiority in the here and now.
But despite Beale’s best intentions, his message was taken and twisted out of context by a section of support which frequently has too much to say for itself - and a habit of lowering standards of decency where its own song book is concerned. As a matter of fact, the whole furore around Beale’s decision to order his players to down tools seems remarkably mean spirited especially given that Rangers were able to recover and secure a place in the last eight where they will face Raith Rovers, without any serious damage being done.
On the contrary, Beale’s gesture set an outstanding example of sporting integrity and one which has been lauded way beyond this country’s own borders. It reflected well on Rangers as a club. However, Beale’s been around here long enough to know by now that this is the way things work in the madhouse of Scottish football. And in Glasgow in particular.
Which is why he’ll probably have a good idea of the significance of what happens next at Hampden this weekend. One way or another, for Beale or for Postecoglou - or maybe even for both - things may never feel quite the same again.
READ NEXT
