I have to admit, this was a tough one to write as there are so many results this season that could have made this list.
The 6-1 win against Hibs at Celtic Park or the 4-3 win against Hearts at Tynecastle? Both results were huge in their own way but both results don’t make my top five.
So bear with me and let me know what you think:
Dundee United 0 v 9 Celtic
The beauty of this result was that the second of the nine goals wasn’t even scored until the 40th minute. Kyogo opened the scoring on the 15th minute and eventually earned himself a hattrick alongside Liel Abada. Jota, Josip Juranovic and Carl Starfelt also added to the nine-goal demolition.
The reason this makes my list is because it sent an early season warning to the rest of the league. It showed the whole of Scottish football that Ange’s team were back and they meant business. It also put the fear of God into our rivals which led to the next result.
Celtic 4 v 0 Rangers
The first Glasgow Derby of the season meant that either side could put an early marker down on the league title. Celtic stepped up and in style. The previous week’s 9-0 win over Dundee United must have affected Giovanni van Bronkhorst’s men in the lead-up to the game.
Knowing Celtic could score at will meant that they had to find a way to keep us out and score against a defence that had conceded just one goal in five games.
A double from Liel Abada and goals from Jota and David Turnbull dealt a huge psychological blow to Rangers that would eventually cost their manager their job.
St Mirren 2 v 0 Celtic
Yes, it’s a defeat but it was a defeat that sent Celtic a message. We will not always have it all our own way. And it worked. The Paisley men shocked Scottish football with this win but what it also did was give this team a shot in the arm.
After this result, Celtic went on a twelve-game winning streak that contributed to Rangers sacking their manager and stretching our lead at the top of the table.
Rangers 2 v 2 Celtic
This game was huge for two reasons. Celtic were visiting Ibrox to face Michael Beale’s Rangers. The Govan side had found a new lease of life under the new manager and were looking to avenge the 4-0 defeat earlier in the season.
The second is that Kyogo was yet to score against our biggest rivals. He remedied that with his 88th-minute equaliser and from there, he went on to score a double in the League Cup Final and another double in my fifth and final choice of the season-defining games.
Celtic 3 v 2 Rangers
The third of three ‘must-win’ games against Celtic for Beale’s men and it was the third time he failed to take anything from us. Heading into this game nine points ahead, Celtic knew that a win would effectively finish off the title. Beale knew that a win would close the gap to six points leaving a small glimmer of hope of a possible title win.
It wasn’t to be as another Kyogo double and a goal from Jota claimed the three points to put Ange Postecoglou’s men twelve points clear and all but in name, crowned the Scottish Champions.
It certainly has been a season of beautiful football and sensational goals. And as I said, people will probably disagree with this but, in my opinion, these five games helped drive Celtic onto a second successive league title and a possible Treble.
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