Hugh Keevins declared Rangers were “everything Celtic are not” in January as he predicted a major power shift in Glasgow. Four months later, that argument looks badly detached from reality.
Celtic beat Rangers after coming from 1-0 behind to win the final Glasgow Derby of the season 3-1 and damn the Ibrox club to yet another trophyless season.
Keevins built his January case against Celtic around optics. Rangers unveiled new signings in choreographed fashion at Ibrox, spoke confidently about recruitment structures and projected stability while Celtic dealt with criticism from supporters and uncertainty around management.
But football has a habit of exposing hype quickly. Celtic have done exactly that and also made Keevins look extremely foolish.
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Rangers were sold as Glasgow’s new force, Celtic answered on the pitch
Keevins claimed Rangers would win the league because they were “everything Celtic are not”, yet the reality of the title race since then tells a very different story.
Celtic are now seven points ahead of Rangers with the season nearly complete. They are also unbeaten against their rivals since Keevins made his prediction.
That includes the damaging 3-1 Glasgow Derby defeat which effectively crushed Rangers’ hopes of backing up the noise that surrounded them earlier in the year.
Keevins treated Rangers’ January activity as evidence of an unstoppable rise. In truth, much of it was presentation. Staged unveiling photos and grand declarations created headlines, but they never guaranteed superiority on the pitch.
Celtic meanwhile kept collecting points. That is what title races are built on.
The Rangers ‘revolution’ never matched the Celtic reality
The biggest weakness in Keevins’ argument was the assumption that recruitment optics automatically translated into dominance.
Andreas Skov Olsen, Tuur Rommens and Tochi Chukwuani were heavily promoted as symbols of Rangers’ new direction. Their actual contribution was modest.
Skov Olsen managed one goal and three assists after arriving. Rommens and Chukwuani also produced limited numbers despite the excitement surrounding their arrivals.
Celtic supporters know better than anyone how important recruitment is. But Keevins attempted to frame ordinary transfer business as proof that Rangers had overtaken Celtic institutionally and mentally.
That now looks wildly premature.
Martin O’Neill repeatedly spoke about consistency and handling pressure during the run-in. Celtic delivered exactly that while Rangers drifted behind both Celtic and Hearts.
Rangers were marketed as Glasgow’s new power in January. By May, Celtic had exposed how horribly wrong that narrative being peddled by Keevins really was.
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