The Battle is Won

Old Firm matches are often how Old Firm managers are judged. Paul Le Guen lost both of his, and Alex McLeish won a healthy number of his. Today was the turn of Walter Smith in his second spell as ‘Gers boss to manage in his first Old Firm match for nine years after previously having a fine record during the 9IAR days.

After a severe dismantling on Thursday at the hands of Osasuna in the Uefa Cup whereby a 1-1 draw was regarded as a mild get out of jail card, the Ibrox men had to gee themselves up for a visit to Parkhead where they had not won for two years. And given the East-enders’ current domestic dominance and 19 point lead in the league, hopes were not high that Rangers could even draw this one, never mind win.

Prior to kick off was the startling news that neither Burke nor Boyd would start this game, with Burke omitted from the entire squad and Boyd having to contend himself with a place on the bench. Further criticism was that once again, Smith was deploying the 4-5-1 formation which had failed so badly in midweek. And the last surprise was a start for the Slovakian black sheep Sebo, a player who has tried with honesty but failed to have an impact, and is maligned in the same way as the likes of Capucho.

So, it was with trepidation that the latest chapter in the city rivalry kicked off. The first half pretty much played as expected, with Celtic enjoying prolonged possession and an embarrassment of opportunities to score – thankfully these chances were being wasted thanks to thoroughly rotten finishing, and it was with a mixture of relief and despair that the Ibrox men made it to half time with a clean sheet. The relief was due to having ridden their luck and managing to successfully contain the Parkhead men, but the despair was down to the abject display from the away side, mirroring that poor performance at Ibrox four days earlier.

The second half saw no substitutions or obvious tactical tinkering by either side, and indeed for the first five minutes of the second period the match pretty much continued as the first had ended.

Until, that is, Ehiogu produced a marvellous overhead kick to fire the ball hard into the corner of the net beyond a despairing Boruc. It was completely against the run of play, completely unexpected, and completely delightful for the travelling fans and millions watching around the world.

From this moment onwards, the game’s dynamic polar-shifted irreconcilably to a total reverse of the first half, only more so.

From here on in, it was the men in blue who totally dominated the play, and started to produce not only explicit possession, but downright impressive play and confident passing. The goal had drained everything from Celtic, and transferred all that guile, poise, craft and confidence over to Rangers. It was now Rangers pressing, Rangers harrying, Rangers surging forward with attack after attack.

The defence looked solid and totally untroubled, and the midfield was starting to impose itself. Word must go to Sebo who never stopped running all day. During the first half he was almost embarrassingly distanced from the middle of the park and totally isolated, but never stopped trying. He even ignored the mocking chants of his name by the home fans, and worked hard running all over the place. He might never make it as a legend for Rangers, but one cannot dismiss his work-rate.

The final whistle was extremely welcome for Rangers, who, thanks to Ehiogu’s acrobatics, had earned themselves a massive step towards that second CL spot, but crucially had won at Parkhead for the first time in 24 months, and now had city bragging rights. Smith has picked up where he left off in that fixture, and some of the vultures circulating Ibrox since the previous two games have suddenly flown away.

Now, a visit to Pamplona awaits…