Kenny Millar singled out the ‘absolutely outstanding’ Josip Juranovic for praise after Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic thumped Old Firm rivals Rangers 3-0 at Parkhead, speaking to talkSPORT (3 February, 9am).
There were two words that became synonymous with Steven Gerrard’s Ibrox reign. ‘Standards’ and ‘intensity’.
As Rangers suffered their first Old Firm derby defeat in two years on Wednesday night, swept away by a tidal wave of Celtic pressure, there was only one team playing with intensity, only one team living up to the standards expected of them.
And it wasn’t Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s visitors.
“I couldn’t believe that Rangers came into the game as if they were shell-shocked by Celtic starting fast,” says Miller, who played on both sides of the Glasgow divide.
“You’ve had 20-odd games of evidence of how Celtic want to play! And I think, as good as they were, if you can get after Celtic, as Rangers did in spells during the second-half, you can win the ball off them high up the pitch.”
It was men against boys at times. Like a pack of hungry hyenas dancing and prancing a wounded old wildebeest, sinking their teeth and drawing blood at will.
Will Celtic now take back Rangers’ crown?
Reo Hatate continued his outstanding start to life in Scotland with two long-range goals. The J-League import then set up Liel Abada’s 13th of a brilliant debut season on the stroke of half-time.
Matt O’Riley, meanwhile, only joined Celtic a fortnight ago but has slotted seamlessly into Ange Postecoglou’s perpetual movement machine. His trusty left foot a powertool and a paintbrush, all in one.
In fact, only two of the players who started on the night – Greg Taylor and Callum McGregor – were Celtic players before Postecoglou’s arrival in June.
“The tempo with which they press, the dominance they had on the ball…” Miller adds, singling out Croatia international full-back Juranovic for an outstanding performance at both ends of the pitch.
The £2.5 million ace restricted Ryan Kent, Rangers’ danger man, to spectator status. He also combined deliciously with O’Riley and Abada in the final third.
Signing of the season?
“The guy who goes under the radar is Juranovic. He was absolutely outstanding,” says Miller.
“And the rotation he has on the right-hand side with O’Riley, with Abada, they caused Rangers all sorts of problems.
If it wasn’t for Allan McGregor – deflecting shot after shot like a scene out of Shaolin Soccer – we might have been looking at a cricket score.
“It could have been more because (Giorgios) Giakoumakis could’ve been going away with the match ball!” Miller points out.
Celtic have now leapfrogged Rangers in the Premiership table with 14 league games remaining.
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