Is there any way back for Celtic in the Premiership title race?
Keith Jackson: It’s a long way back now but Gerrard was correct to play the humble card again. There are some warning signs where his team’s form is concerned and they can’t afford to take anything for granted just yet. If they are to finish off the job then they must remain relentless.
Craig Swan: No. Gerrard said the right things as he has to keep his players on their mettle but Rangers are out of sight and there’s no way back for Celtic.
Fraser Wilson: You can never say never but it’s going to take one of the all-time miraculous turnarounds. Celtic’s performances have improved but it’s more about relying on Rangers suffering a catastrophic collapse and there’s very little sign of that.
Gavin Berry: Gerrard wouldn’t gain anything from saying it’s over but it’s as good as done. Rangers haven’t lost any of their 22 league games and would need to lose four of their last 16 with Celtic winning all of their remaining 19 games. It’s unlikely.
Where does Neil Lennon stand as Celtic review his position?
Jackson: To some extent Celtic may have boxed themselves in. The team has improved but the gamble of sticking with Lennon was always based upon hoping for a win at Ibrox. It backfired and it’s difficult to see anywhere else for them to go now. It looks like it’s his job for the rest of this season at least.
Swan: It’s a tricky one because Celtic played the best they have in over a year in an Old Firm game and should have won, so that needs taken into account as well as the result.
Wilson: Given the run of results and the performance at Ibrox up until the sending off then I’d say in a better position than a month back. But only the Parkhead board can decide.
Berry: It depends on the board’s long-term thinking. If they don’t believe he is the man to take the club forward and the title has gone then there is an argument to make a change now if they have a successor in mind. If not then they back him and plan for the future.
Allan McGregor produced a man of the match display and has been compared to Andy Goram. Who is Rangers' best ever goalkeeper?
Jackson: McGregor is starting to shade this argument. If he helps to deliver the title this year then he’ll be regarded by many as the club’s greatest-ever goalie.
Swan: McGregor is a Rangers stalwart and that display at the weekend was outstanding. Goram though was just in a different league. He was still better.
Wilson: This is a Scottish goalie version of Messi or Ronaldo and just as difficult. Goram in his pomp was as good as anybody in the world. But McGregor, for still producing as he approaches 39, might just pip The Goalie.
Berry: Let’s not forget Chris Woods and Stefan Klos, two other outstanding Gers keepers. But it probably does come down to Goram v McGregor and as good as the current No.1 has been over his two spells, Goram was arguably one of the best shot-stoppers in the world at his peak.
What can Celtic expect to get out of their trip to Dubai?
Jackson: At a time when the rest of us are locked in the house it’s not a great look. Neil Lennon will be hoping the traditional jaunt puts a spring in the step of his players for the second half of the season but it’s a difficult one to justify all the same.
Swan: It hasn’t done them any harm at all in the past four years. They need to return and win 10 or 12 games in a row to show it was wise.
Wilson: A chance to step back, evaluate and produce a plan with absolutely no margin for error. Which still might not be enough. They’re not breaking any rules but it still doesn’t look good.
Berry: While they aren’t breaking any rules it doesn’t look good on so many levels. The fact they are so far behind in the title race, that they could have squeezed in one of their games in hand and flying out in the middle of a pandemic.
