St Johnstone interim boss reacts to 6-0 thumping with clear verdict on Celtic

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Tonight was always going to be a difficult match for St Johnstone, and Celtic’s ruthless 6-0 thrashing can’t have been easy to take.

Going into the match without a permanent manager following the sacking of Craig Levein, few gave the home side a chance of picking up a positive result against the on-fire champions.

Celtic lived up to their billing with goals from Kyogo Furuhashi, Paulo Bernardo, Callum McGregor, Daizen Maeda and Adam Idah raining down on the home side.

Brendan Rodgers was certainly left impressed, picking out the tireless Maeda as the team’s catalyst off the ball, allowing them to open up and exploit the home side.

After the match, St Johnstone interim boss Andy Kirk was clear in his verdict that Celtic are the best team in the league right now.

Andy Kirk says Celtic are the ‘best team in the country’

Speaking to Premier Sports after the match, he said: “It’s difficult. We know how good Celtic are and we knew they were going to cause us a lot of problems.

“The disappointing thing for us was that, in three or four of the goals, we can do a lot better. There’s basic defending that if we get right, we can maybe stop.

“It’s difficult. We know that Celtic are a much better team. They’re the best team in the country in my opinion. They’re competing in the Champions League. We knew it was going to be a really tough ask to contain them.”

Kirk looked a bit shell-shocked in the interview, which is understandable given the difficult situation for him, his staff, and his players. Celtic took full advantage.

He added to The Courier: “Listen, when Celtic are in that form they’re unstoppable at times. They’ve got threats all over the pitch.

“You have to hold your hands up and say that they are way, way ahead of where we are all over the pitch. You can see them doing that to a lot of teams this season.”

Celtic outgrowing Scottish challenge, now Europe awaits

The improvement that Rodgers has brought to Celtic over the last 12 months is clear. There’s hunger, tireless work ethic, excellent tactical awareness and ruthless quality in the final third.

Their status as the best side in Scotland is undeniable, probably even for ardent Rangers supporters.

While they must maintain that consistency domestically, the real test of Celtic’s current status is in Europe. Tuesday night’s trip to Borussia Dortmund will tell us a lot about the Bhoys’ true ability right now.

Will they rise to the challenge like they did against Slovan Bratislava? Or will it be a familiar away performance on the continent?

The exciting part is that nobody really knows. Celtic are stepping into the unknown and have earned the hype around them. Now it’s time to deliver and execute on the biggest stage again.