Neil Lennon reckons Martin O’Neill isn’t quite the same character he was on the touchline all those years ago. After the 2-2 draw at Ibrox, Lennon said time has softened the edges a bit.

At half-time, Celtic were two down and hanging on. Rangers had bullied them in midfield and the game was slipping. Lennon joked that two decades ago the dressing room walls might have taken a hit. This time, it sounds like O’Neill kept it calmer.

Whatever he said landed. Celtic came out with more purpose. They stopped getting brushed aside in the middle of the park and started playing higher up the pitch. Rangers, so comfortable before the break, began to edge back towards their own box.

Lennon also mentioned the staff around O’Neill. There’s more support now, more voices. The second half felt like a team that believed it could turn it around rather than one rattled by the scoreline.

He said: (Sky Sports), “Well, he just said 20 years ago he’d have been turning paint off the wall, which he would have been.

“Me and Mr Sutton would have been getting in the neck. Yeah, he’s obviously mellowed and he’s got, you know, Sean and Mark and Stephen and Gavin all around him, the backroom staff as well.

“So he’s maybe a little bit more, less sort of reactive and he’s maybe thinking about things a little bit more. But whatever he did at half-time, he got it bang on.

“Celtic were so much better in the second half, so much freer in their play. They were brave on the ball and Hatate was very good in the game.

“I’m not saying he was the whole difference in the second half, but he played well, which he should do. He’s a top player, and there needed to be more of that from the leaders in the team. McGregor was good second half, and Maeda had a brilliant chance as well.”

Lennon’s point about bravery showed in the way Celtic handled possession. In the first half they rushed it. After the break they trusted their shape and waited for openings.

Hatate’s presence helped steady things. He demanded the ball and moved Rangers around. That gave McGregor more freedom to step forward.

The calm at half-time carried into the pitch. No panic. Just better decisions. At Ibrox, that can be the difference between folding and fighting back.