Sunday is billed as trophy day for obvious reasons, but while some are treating the game against ICT as a formality before Celtic lift the League trophy there is still one last record to chase for.
Celtic have currently only conceded 17 goals in the SPFL this season, that means if they keep a clean sheet against ICT this weekend they would better Martin O’Neill’s treble winning side’s defensive performance in season 01/02 – not only that but they would also have the best defensive showing in the Scottish top flight in 96 years!
Martin O’Neill’s treble winning side conceded 18 goals in a very memorable campaign and while not on the level of what the Northern Irishman achieved it has still been a very memorable campaign. Ronny Deila and his team with the opportunity to beat Martin’s defensively at least.
While some might shrug this stat off as an irrelevance we should not underplay it’s importance. Celtic went through a lot of changes at the start of the season and Ronny was clinging to his job at one point. To come out at the end of the season with two trophies, harshly missing out on a third while his turnaround team became a much stronger, defensive unit.
Craig Gordon, Virgil van Dijk and Jason Denayer have been at the core of this season’s league campaign and should be given the most credit. When Celtic were still finding their way with all the changes the three of them stayed the course and weathered the storm.
It would be a fitting way to end this season and perhaps this defensive pairing. With interest high in both players and Denayer here on-loan we aren’t guaranteed to see these bhoys past next Sunday. To see them help Celtic towards such a fine defensive record would be nice to see.
With all that in mind and the fact ICT were the team who halted Celtic in their treble quest it all adds up for a very interesting and ultimately memorable day in Paradise.
Never take a league title for granted, take it from a 90’s kid! When the game is over and whether we have kept a clean sheet or not I hope everyone enjoys the day and we all roar with Ronny as we celebrate 4 in a row. It’s good to be the Champions!!!
