Rumour has it the green and white wrappers meant Peperami was removed from the order sheet for the pre-match food kiosk’s at Ibrox, yet Kris Commons believes ‘ a bit of an animal’ is heading for theRangers – and it won’t be so easy to keep this one off the menu at Ibrox this time around.
Writing in his Daily Mail column the former Celt, feels Ange Postecoglou can inflict serious psychological damage on theRangers team, if they can go to Ibrox and win in their rivals back yard, straight off the back of the ‘skelping the Hoops handed out with a 3-0 win at Celtic Park last month, as Commons senses a real vulnerability in theRangers camp.
“It’s not just the fact that Celtic would go six points clear. There are a few different things you have to consider in all of this. It’s the psychological damage they could inflict on (the)Rangers if they were to beat them on their own patch on the back of that Celtic Park annihilation.
“There’s also the fact that (the)Rangers are still juggling their domestic ambitions with trying to make further progress in the Europa League. Even beyond next week’s game, I still feel there’s a vulnerability to this (the)Rangers team domestically and I sense that they could drop more points from now until the end of the season.
“I don’t get that same impression from Celtic at the moment. They look extremely slick and well-drilled. Postecoglou has created an animal. If they do go on and become Champions, I feel it would rank as one of the sweetest league titles in Celtic’s history, given the shambles the club were in last summer.”
And for Commons it will be a time for experienced heads in the Celtic leadership group to stand up, be counted, and pass on their experience of big games and league title pressure, as Commons states the ‘ice cool’ advice of former boss Neil Lennon was always in the back of Commons mind when they went to Ibrox.
“I expect (the)Rangers to go full throttle and try to unsettle Celtic in the early part of the match. Their fans will demand them to get on the front foot. It will be a big test for the Celtic defence and the likes of Carl Starfelt and Cameron Carter- Vickers. They have both improved steadily as the season has gone on.
“But, particularly in European games, Celtic have been exposed at the back too easily. (the)Rangers will look to play on that and maybe plant some doubts into their minds again. That’s where the likes of Callum McGregor and Joe Hart will be key in the spine of the team. If Celtic start having a wobble at any point, they need to use their experience to calm things down.
“I remember a few games where I literally couldn’t hear some of my team-mates when they were stood only a few yards away from me on the pitch. The noise is deafening and that’s the cauldron Celtic must prepare themselves for this weekend. (the)Rangers will be coming after them because, from their point of view, it’s probably last-chance saloon.”
Celtic head into Sunday’s game, three points clear and a win would complete an incredible twelve-point turnaround over theRangers since the winter break. And with 31 domestic games without defeat, Ange Postecoglou has his side brimming with confidence, and much like the Peperami on the Ibrox banned list, the Hoops at this moment in time really are a bit of an animal.
Niall J
