Perfect Paisley

Players are not machines.  They cannot go into every game with the same energy or motivation.  You will remember the only time Celtic beat reigning European champions, our win over Milan in 2007, was followed by a scare against Gretna, which required two goals in the final 4 minutes to recuse the points.  This is not a criticism, they are human and react accordingly.

In this respect, visiting St Mirren on Sunday is probably a good thing.  Returning to the scene of our only domestic defeat this season should draw enough response from the tank to ensure we are not caught cold.  Sometimes you are better off with a taxing game than facing relegation strugglers at home.

St Mirren are also in the comfort zone.  They are fighting for a top six finish, which would be a ‘nice to have’, but is far removed from the fight-for-their-income consequences at the foot of the table.  They also don’t have a new manager to provide a dead cat bounce.  In the belief that Celtic play better against better opponents, a visit to Paisley is perfect.