Image source: PA Media
Image caption: Daizen Maeda scored twice as Celtic beat Rangers to move within a point of Hearts
The main event has arrived, the headline act. With one week remaining, the last supporting player—Rangers—has been shuffled to the wings, leaving only Hearts and Celtic under the spotlight.
A football nation is gripped, regardless of allegiance. You don’t have to wear maroon or green to be moved by this. Whether you favour blue, tangerine, red, black, or claret and amber, everyone has a stake in the drama, a reason to be hooked.
Audiences across the UK, Europe, and around the world are watching.
For months, Hearts have fielded media inquiries from all corners of the globe, each wanting a piece of the potential miracle on Gorgie Road. That interest will only intensify now. Celtic have dispatched Rangers and are closing in on Hearts. Can Derek McInnes’ side hold them off in the final days of a tumultuous campaign?
Thirty-six games down, just two to go. One point and three goals separate the contenders.
Hearts are chasing the fairytale of a first league title in 66 years, while Celtic—guided by Martin O’Neill—are aiming for a triumph unlike many before. For O’Neill, in his final week as one of Celtic’s most storied managers, this would be a different kind of fairytale.
Earlier in the season, Celtic Park was filled with bitterness and rancour. Protests erupted, fury aimed at the board, thunder directed at the unwitting Wilfried Nancy—the greatest piece of managerial miscasting since Russell Martin at Rangers months earlier. A title win was far from the minds of many Celtic fans then. The trophy they most desired was a resignation letter or two.
While chaos unfolded in Glasgow, calm reigned in the capital.
And now? You can hear hearts pounding from a thousand paces. Fans of both clubs have been on a journey, and the toughest steps still lie ahead.
Celtic took care of Rangers on Sunday, setting up a grand finale: a round of fixtures on Wednesday, then the final showdown on Saturday. We haven’t seen anything like this in ages.
Image caption: Hearts host Falkirk on Wednesday, while Celtic travel to Motherwell. Then the top two meet at Parkhead on Saturday.
More twists and turns lie ahead.
Daizen Maeda was a towering figure in the Old Firm derby, extinguishing Rangers’ faint title hopes with two goals in four minutes just after the break—the second a bicycle kick that looped into Jack Butland’s net. Rangers are now done, some complaining about a first-half tackle by Alistair Johnston on Mikey Moore that drew a yellow card when they wanted red, others questioning the legitimacy of Celtic’s opening goal. Just noise.
Having spent £35m-£40m in the last two transfer windows, Rangers’ race is run. A leadership deficit cost them their place in the finale; a weakness at their core caught up with them in the end.
Now attention turns to Wednesday, when Hearts will hold a one-point, three-goal advantage at the top as they host Falkirk. Celtic must travel to Fir Park, a venue that might as well have red warning signs outside, reminding all visitors of the danger ahead.
Twists and turns to come? You can almost count on it.
O’Neill said two wins from the last two games would be like climbing two mountains—but if it happens, they’ll be champions. Not pretty, not convincing, not easy on the eye, but champions nonetheless.