It doesn’t need any further emphasis that Celtic lost one of the most significant games of the ongoing campaign on Sunday. Above all, the way they succumbed to defeat against a Rangers side that had played 120 minutes just a few days earlier, appeared to be the most disheartening factor in the aftermath of the club’s elimination from this season’s Scottish Cup.
The semi-final defeat to the Ibrox side ended Celtic’s hopes of winning a domestic treble this season. With the Scottish League Cup already in the bag and the Hoops being the current favourites to win the Premiership, the club needed to win the Scottish Cup to complete a flawless 2021/22 domestic campaign.
But it is not possible anymore as the Rangers are through to the finals after getting the better of Celtic on Sunday evening. Greg Taylor’s opener in the second half gave the Hoops the lead in the game, but Scott Arfield grabbed the equaliser. The game headed for extra time and Postecoglou’s side appeared out on their feet.
Carl Starfelt’s deflection went into the back of his own net in extra time, and Celtic could not find an equaliser of their own.
What Celtic captain told his teammates after the defeat vs Rangers
As reported by the Glasgow Times, Callum McGregor said after the defeat against the Rangers:
“There’s five games to win the league and that’s what we have to do.
“We have to regroup, go again take the disappointment, we accept it.
“It’s never nice, it feels horrible, I can tell you. In there (the dressing room) everyone’s devastated. But we’ve got five games to win the league and that’s where we have to go. We have to go again.
“Harness all the good stuff we’ve done this year and learn from that, take that forward. We’ve got a big finish to the end of the season.
“This is one of the few times we’ve had a bit of a slap in the face. So it’s important that we show everyone to react in the right way. That’s all we can do now. It’s gone.
“You can analyse the game or whatever. But the fact is it doesn’t come back. We have to regroup, we’ll talk about it. But ultimately, we’re looking at the end of the season and we want to make it a successful season.”
Celtic play their next game against Ross County, away, on Sunday. The players will get adequate time to reflect on their narrow defeat to the Rangers.
They will get the chance to get their win back though, as the two Glasgow sides face each other once again, in May. That would be the rubber match between the two, with both having won twice each this season till now and the result on that day could have a huge impact on the Premiership title race.
This article was originally posted here