Opinion: One game at a time needs to be Celtic’s philosophy

Celtic are in the middle of a busy schedule of games which will see the Hoops in action nine times over the next month, with fixtures in Europe, the Scottish Cup and in the Premiership.

Of course, there is one game that sticks out in those nine fixtures, and it is the Glasgow derby against Rangers, which is less than a week away, and will be played at Celtic Park on the 2nd of February.

If the fans are thinking about that game it is understandable. After all, the Hoops haven’t played Rangers at home with fans in attendance since December 2019, which is over two years ago. 

However, even though Ange Postecoglou and his Celtic players will no doubt be looking forward to playing in a derby in front of around 60,000 Hoops fans, no one at the club will be thinking about the game against Rangers just yet.

That is because the Hoops have another league to play before the match against Rangers, and it won’t be an easy one. Celtic take on Dundee United at Celtic Park on Saturday, in a game which the Hoops need to take three points in to ensure that they go into the derby in a good frame of mind.

The reason that the game won’t be easy is that the Tannadice side have shown that they know how to get a result at Celtic Park already this season – the teams drew 1-1 back in September.

Now, Celtic are a much improved side since then, and are on a good run at the moment. But that doesn’t guarantee that the Hoops will win the game on Saturday unless the team is at it’s best.

That is why the Hoops boss and the players won’t be thinking of the derby just yet. The philosophy of the team has to be ‘one game at a time’, and that really has to be the case for every game that Celtic play this season.

As soon as the final whistle blows at Celtic Park this weekend, there is no doubt that attention will quickly turn to the derby, and by the time the game kicks off on Wednesday, there will be real excitement about the game.

Before that though, Celtic have to make sure that the team picks up the three points against Dundee United. Another big performance will be needed, similar to the one which helped the Hoops pick up the win in midweek over Hearts.