Neil McCann unsurprisingly backtracks on comparing Gerrard's team to Celtic invincibles

By David Walton

March 22, 2021

Neil McCann has decided to backtrack when it comes to comparing Steven Gerrard’s Rangers team to Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic invincibles.

Speaking back in December, McCann bigged up the idea of Gerrard’s side emulating the Hoops’ class of 2016/17. Speaking to BBC Scotland, he said: “There’s now a real belief amongst pundits, Rangers fans and maybe even fearful Celtic fans that this Rangers side are the real deal. I believe they could emulate the Brendan Rodgers invincible team in the league.”

However, he’s now claimed that it’s “unfair” to compare the two teams for some wild reason. Funnily enough, it comes after Rangers failed to win at Celtic Park and can now no longer catch Celtic’s points total from that year.

Speaking in a BBC Scotland column, McCann said: “As Rangers move closer to an unbeaten season, people will compare the team to Celtic’s invincibles from 2016-17, when Brendan Rodgers was in charge.

“Unlike Rodgers’ side, Rangers can’t win the treble but there will still be analysis of their league campaigns in terms of points, goals scored etc.

“I think it’s unfair to compare teams like that, but I do wonder how they would have fared playing against one another. Maybe one day in the computer world someone might throw that together and see if we can get a virtual outcome. Both are terrific sides.”

Neil McCann started off this comparison with the Celtic invincibles, so let’s finish it off

“Maybe one day in the computer world someone might throw that together and see if we can get a virtual outcome”. Where do you even begin with that one?

When McCann touted Rangers as possibly emulating Rodgers’ team, does he not know he was comparing them? He was using Celtic as a measuring stick and stating Rangers would, in his mind, reach those same heights.

However, now that they can’t, why is there a sudden urge to call a proper in-depth comparison “unfair”? Rangers have only managed five draws this season. You know what? Fair play to them. They’ve managed a perfect storm this season and it takes some going to only slip up in five matches whilst avoiding defeat. But Rodgers’ side only slipped up in four overall.

We also managed 106 goals in that season too. Rangers have 78. They would need to manage 28 goals in five games to match Rodgers’ attacking success. Not to mention the fact that Celtic’s invincibles won all three domestic competitions. Rangers have so far won one with the final trophy – the Scottish Cup – still to be determined.

Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic Invincibles / (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

It’s funny that McCann doesn’t actually want to compare the two sides in any great detail. Had Rangers won at Parkhead he no doubt would’ve been all over the comparison. He would’ve been all for talking up Gerrard’s side as matching Rodgers’ team.

He then wonders who would’ve won out of the two sides? But isn’t interested in comparing the actual stats involved in both of their campaigns.

Rodgers’ team brought something to Scottish football that won’t be replicated for a long time. Put his team, in its prime, against Gerrard’s current Ibrox side? Come on, there’s only one winner. With Elyounoussi and Edouard running them ragged yesterday, Moussa Dembele and Scott Sinclair would hardly have been running scared.

In other news, Celtic man Luca Connell’s has been speaking in his first interview since leaving on loan for Queen’s Park.