THE Premiership title will be won on the park. If Rangers come up short once again, it will have been lost in the Ibrox boardroom.
The lessons of last season have not been learned. When the same mistakes are made, the same outcomes are likely to follow and a repeat should spell the end for many in blue shirts and brown brogues.
When title 55 was won on the back of an unbeaten league campaign – one that was so ruthless, so relentless, from start to finish – the time had come for Rangers to kick-on, to go again. The Old Firm balance of power had shifted and it was the blue side of the city who had the chance to dominate domestically.
The rest, of course, is history. And now the fear is that it is repeating itself as the Ibrox board stand accused of failing to back their manager adequately, of refusing to invest in the right ways and at the right moments.
Rather than motoring away from Celtic with the red, white and blue ribbons on the Premiership trophy, Rangers found themselves trailing behind their Old Firm rivals last term. It will take some turnaround for the same situation not to unfold this time out.
The mantra from Celtic is that they never stop. Rangers never got going at Parkhead.
But it is the fact that they have seemingly stood still once again that will really frustrate and anger supporters. Just days after the transfer window closed, their fears were played out.
The fact that Scott Wright was the first switch that Van Bronckhorst made at the break told its own story. This squad simply doesn’t have enough match winners or game changers.
That was evident long before the final whistle here. It has been clear since last season but repeated opportunities to rectify the situation have been passed up and wasted.
Giovanni Van Bronckhorst insisted on Friday that he was content with his options and had no qualms about not adding on deadline day but a disgruntled fanbase will now ask serious questions of their manager, Ross Wilson, the sporting director, and the Ibrox board.
A balance sheet that has been boosted by European achievement and high-profile departures will have a reassuringly pleasing look about it this financial year. Come May, the directors, executives and their boss better hope the Premiership table does as well.
If not, a second successive collapse should end a host of Ibrox tenures. Failing to build on 55 was arguably reason enough but not doing it this season, whether it be through an inability or an unwillingness, cannot be overlooked.
Come the hour mark, none of the seven summer signings were on the park. This 90 minutes can be assessed in isolation by those who wish to do so, but a squad that is unbalanced will produce a team of hopeful challengers rather than likely champions.
A derby defeat that was as embarrassing as it was abject will not be forgiven or forgotten by supporters. Celtic were worthy winners once again and the only consolation for Rangers was that the margin of defeat wasn’t even more damaging.
The manager and his players will have to take the blame for that. Just months on from the Parkhead drubbing that turned the tide in the last title race, Rangers suffered a setback that leaves them already five points off the pace this term.
It is still early in the campaign. It is already a long way back for Rangers, though, and a team and a squad that had major questions asked about it pre-match must find the answers quickly if their Premiership challenge isn’t to unravel in the same manner that it did after Van Bronckhorst’s appointment last November.
This was a passive, pathetic performance from Rangers. Celtic were not just more tactically astute, they were sharper, hungrier and had the ability to match their mindset.
The three first half goals conceded should shame any side. Take nothing away from the finishes from Liel Abada, as the winger netted the first and third, or the wonderful dinked effort from Jota for the second, but Rangers were masters of their own downfall.
When the ball stopped, Celtic restarted. It was their speed of thought and movement from a throw-in that resulted in them breaking the deadlock and the theme continued as Rangers – lackadaisical and lacklustre throughout – were caught sleeping at every turn.
It was just not good enough. For the second time in three matches here, the game was lost by the break and the remaining minutes were largely an irrelevance to Rangers.
There was still time for another howler and the mistake from Jon McLaughlin was symptomatic of his performance as David Turnbull completed the scoring. It was a derby present and Rangers are in danger of gift-wrapping the trophy to Celtic.
This was a derby that Rangers deserved to lose on the park. If the Premiership title evades them once again, the blame game will claim victims in the dressing room and the boardroom.
