“We were awful that day. It was never a Celtic team, playing that game,” Brendan Rodgers | OneFootball

Brendan Rodgers spoke to the media after his side’s 4-1 trouncing of Ross County and discussed various talking points from the game and how the team has bounced back from the Ibrox defeat at the beginning of the month…

Liam Scales blocks as Vaclav Cerny of Rangers shoots during the Scottish Premiership match at Ibrox, Rangers v Celtic, Scottish Premiership, Photo O Rourke/Shutterstock

The team has been steadfast in their recovery from a result that not only shocked but did cause a certain amount of worry as it did not in any way resemble what the supporters have come to know and admire.

Ibrox display goes down as one of the worst in recent history

Undoubtedly, the Ibrox display goes down as one of the worst in recent history as we were a shadow of the team that has dominated this part of the footballing world for well over a decade now. Quadruple Trebles and countless Scottish Premiership titles have come to be the norm and that exceedingly high standard was helped set by the Irishman himself, so the result in Govan a couple of weeks back must have irked him more than most.

Brendan Rodgers, Manager of Celtic looks on following the SPL Premier League match between Rangers FC and Celtic FC at Ibrox on January 02, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Ange Postecoglou suffered a similar sort of result when he was Celtic boss, faltering to the same 3-0 scoreline on a hot day in May, when Celtic were all over the place and struggled to really have any say in the game. It was another game where the league had already been won and the foot had clearly come off of the gas a bit in the last few fixtures. That day resembled the one we had on 2 January, in that the players just never got going and the lack of intensity to our play was obvious.

Dead rubber nature of game no excuse

We cannot be content with using that as an excuse though, as the winning culture that has been instilled and built through years and years of hard graft must be maintained, or else we risk losing our place as the team to beat in Scottish football. Rodgers knows this all too well and when prompted again at the weekend over the Ibrox performance, he could do nothing but shake his head in disbelief when recounting that particular encounter.

Brendan Rodgers, Manager of Celtic, arrives at the stadium prior to the SPL Premier League match between Rangers FC and Celtic FC at Ibrox Stadium on January 02, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

True to his own very impeccable standards and form, he was almost speechless when revising that sequence of events which unfolded before his eyes on a rather dark and sombre day for the Hoops. “We were awful that day. It was never a Celtic team, playing that game,” Brendan said. “Nowhere near a Celtic team through the years – the lack of competition and that. But we know that.”

When asked directly if that defeat still feels painful to recount, he revealed openly: “It always does when you lose any game, especially a Celtic vs theRangers game, in the manner that we did. It’s a learning opportunity. The response has been great.”

Paul Gillespie

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