Celtic’s Struggles Highlighted After Defeat to Rangers

Luke McCowan expressed his concerns about Celtic’s performance, questioning, “When has it ever been this bad?” This statement follows Celtic’s 3-1 home defeat to Rangers last Saturday.

Despite leading 1-0 at halftime, the defending champions conceded three goals within a 22-minute span in the second half, allowing Rangers to equalize on points with their city rivals. Both Glasgow teams are now trailing the Scottish Premiership leaders by six points, with 20 of the 38 fixtures completed.

Celtic began the season with five wins and two draws from their first nine league matches, resulting in the departure of manager Brendan Rodgers after successive defeats to Dundee and Hearts. Interim coach Martin O’Neill initially found success with five consecutive league victories; however, current manager Wilfried Nancy has achieved only two wins in his six Premiership games, with Saturday’s defeat marking the fourth loss in the league.

Additionally, Celtic suffered a 3-1 defeat to St Mirren in the Premier Sports Cup final, resulting in the team missing out on the last two domestic cups after a prior success rate of 13 in the previous 17. They have also secured 13 out of the last 14 league titles.

McCowan, who joined Celtic in the summer of 2024, remarked, “Let’s call a spade a spade – when has it ever been this bad? It’s never. You’re asking fans to react to something they’re witnessing for the first time, and as players, we’re feeling it for the first time.

“It’s not nice. I can assure you from a player’s perspective, it lingers. It haunts you every minute of every day when you’re not winning. Coming home, not speaking to anyone, just sitting on the couch, staring at a blank screen instead of enjoying highlights or darts.

“But that’s part of playing for Celtic. You must embrace that pressure, step up, and show character. At times, we haven’t done that well enough. We need to unite and push forward.

“This is the second time in weeks that we’ve led at halftime only to lose, having faced a similar scenario against Dundee United. Rangers altered their strategy, and we failed to adapt adequately, which is unacceptable.

“I’ll probably reiterate that at least 20 times in these interviews, but it truly has to improve. Rangers should not be able to come here and win 3-1; that’s simply not acceptable.”