With Celtic fans celebrating their double success into the summer Keith Jackson has comforted Daily Record readers with the fine detail on how Phil Clement mastered Brendan Rodgers and his players at Hampden on Saturday.
In November 2011 Jackson introduced the Record’s army of readers to a billionaire from Motherwell.
According to the veteran Record reporter the Belgian Beale won every tactical battle at Hampden only to be denied his rightful glory by a cruel mistake from the brilliant Jack Butland that presented Celtic with their winning goal.
Print sales of the Record are expected to dip below 50,000 next month, with Jackson delivering the soothing news from Ibrox they are clearly pitching to a declining demographic with many online bears starting to see through the alleged brilliance of A Proper Football Manager.
Celtic were off form on Saturday, well short of their best, miles away from the levels hit away to Kilmarnock but they still matched Clement’s side in every area of the pitch but with a cutting edge in front of goal.
In the first half Celtic were denied two penalties, a handball from Ben Davies and Leon Balongun’s brutal attack on Kyogo Furuhashi, both ignored by John Beaton on VAR.
Since the start of April Rodgers has relied on 11 players plus Adam Idah, on Saturday at Hampden many of those players were running on empty- the all went home with winners medals.
That reality is clearly a painful reality for Record readers, with a glass more than half full Jackson delivers some hope to hang onto through the painful summer months:
Let’s begin with some plaudits though because the truth of the matter is the best players on the pitch were all wearing Rangers shirts. From the emergency centre back pairing of Ben Davies and Leon Balogun, who hardly put a foot wrong, the outstanding double act of Mohamed Diomande and Nicolas Raskin in midfield, to Todd Cantwell who stepped up onto the big stage and ran himself into the ground having presumably eaten one shooshburger too many during the week.
All of them were head and shoulders above anything Celtic could muster on a day when it seemed the league celebrations had emptied their tank. But that’s the trouble with this Rangers side. Too often, in the games which define a season, their best just isn’t good enough. Clement, for his part, was also a star performer in the tactical jousting with Brendan Rodgers. Indeed, the Ibrox boss could not have wished for his plan to come together with such emphatic effect.
He added:
Yes, this was Clement’s way of mixing things up and attempting to find answers to the same puzzles which have been bamboozling Rangers over these last three years.
Like how to stop Callum McGregor from dominating proceedings every time he’s confronted by someone wearing a blue shirt. The solution? Confront him with two of them. It was Cantwell and Cyriel Dessers who took it in turns to shut Celtic’s captain down when he was roaming around in deep areas attempting to get on the ball and get his side moving forward.
Yes, this was Clement’s way of mixing things up and attempting to find answers to the same puzzles which have been bamboozling Rangers over these last three years.
Like how to stop Callum McGregor from dominating proceedings every time he’s confronted by someone wearing a blue shirt. The solution? Confront him with two of them. It was Cantwell and Cyriel Dessers who took it in turns to shut Celtic’s captain down when he was roaming around in deep areas attempting to get on the ball and get his side moving forward.
And, with their main cog all choked up, the Celtic machine began to cough and splutter more than most could have expected. For long spells during the opening 45 minutes, the champions simply couldn’t settle into any kind of stride. And even when the misfiring Dessers was replaced by Abdallah Sima at half time, Clement’s strategical blueprint stayed in place.
It was a combination of Sima and Cantwell at first. And when Cantwell’s race was eventually run, midway through the second half, Scott Wright came on to occupy the same spaces. Every now and then – albeit not nearly often enough – McGregor would break into a gap and try to get his team functioning.
Over three trophies and five head-to-head matches under two different managers the Ibrox Tribute Act have been outplayed, out thoughts and comprehensively beaten by Celtic on every level this season.
Every Celtic fan knows that this season was a large step back with a reduced core of trusted players guided through to the double by the management of Rodgers. Beyond Saturday’s Starting XI plus Idah, Paulo Bernardo and Tomoki Iwata there probably isn’t any players that Rodgers considers as starters.
Four or five first team starters are expected by supporters during a project free summer transfer window, in addition to making the Idah deal permanent.
Last summer Micky Beale basked in the after-glow of winning a dead rubber, it looks like Mister Clement can enjoy a free ride through the coming months with two moral victories on display in the Blue Room.
CLICK HERE for two faced Keevins makes remarkable Rodgers u-turn
CLICK HERE for Santa Ponsa celebrates Celtic’s victory in the Glasgow Derby.
CLICK HERE for SPFL Premiership table.
