‘Celtic hold all the aces at home amid clamour for more ambition’

On the night Celtic secured the title last season Brendan Rodgers didn’t sugar-coat his words. When asked for his thoughts on the campaign as a whole, he said it had been “very challenging” and a “little bit tedious”. His tone was that of a man who had been through the mill.

Not vintage, he said. And he was right. Celtic lost three games in the league and drew another six. Some of their victories were won late and unconvincingly. There were flickers, but they never really caught fire. And still they won a double.

Celtic Park was full of bitterness and rancour on occasion, but Rodgers navigated his way through it all. They won the league handily in the end. They also won the Scottish Cup.

And yet, for some, the lasting memory might be more about the grind than the glory.

After Rangers blew up during the run-in, the gap at the top settled at eight points, which is more than Ange Postecoglou managed in both of his league-winning seasons.

Reading the tea leaves of the pre-season friendlies, it looks like Rodgers will have an altogether easier time of it in the months ahead.

Summer games can be an unreliable indication of a team’s worth, but Celtic’s victories over Manchester City and Chelsea (and Rangers’ travails in comparison) were eye-catching. They took Chelsea to the cleaners, winning 4-1 against a group of players signed for around half a billion. They beat City 4-3. Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish both played.

There was a freshness about Celtic in those games that was noticeable. The only new signings they had on show were goalkeepers, but the energy, sharpness and intent was impressive.

Given the shambles across the city, this season already looks like it could be a stroll for the champions.

And that’s before they’ve made any significant moves in the transfer market, which are surely coming soon. Kasper Schmeichel and Viljami Sinisalo are the new goalkeepers, Paolo Bernardo has returned on a permanent deal and the dance with Norwich over Adam Idah continues.

Idah, it’s believed, is desperate to return to Celtic, where he tore it up last season. That deal will probably get done after some more jousting.

Maybe the same could be said about the Matt O’Riley situation, a long-running transfer story that is the footballing equivalent of The Mouse Trap.

O’Riley is the Celtic player trading model in all its glory. Bought for buttons, he’s been outstanding in goals, assists and all-round class. He’s now the subject of multiple bids from the reigning Europa League champions, Atalanta.

They’re reportedly offering £15m. They’ll need to try again. Celtic are pretty adept at getting value for an asset, particularly one they’re in no rush to sell. They’ll win in a football sense if he stays and they’ll win in a financial sense if he leaves.

The Celtic board have, of course, received dog’s abuse from fans for the business they’ve done in recent times – too many projects and not enough first-team ready operators.

Their most recent turnover was £120m and they hold £67.3m in bank reserves. Their advantages over a struggling Rangers are vast. And that’s before you factor in their guaranteed windfall of around £40m in the new-look Champions League.

Rangers have to get through two tough ties to get a piece of that action. The odds are against them.

They won’t say it publicly, but Rangers envy Celtic’s player trading model. Over the last dozen years Celtic have brought in transfer fees somewhere north of £170m. On Fraser Forster, Virgil van Dijk, Stuart Armstrong, Moussa Dembele, Kristoffer Ajer, Odsonne Edouard, Jeremie Frimpong and Jota alone they made a profit of over £80m.

They’ve spent plenty of money on duds, too, but taken as a whole their business has been strong.

Now that they’re holding all the aces on the domestic front, Rodgers, and the supporters, want the board to show a bit more ambition in the market. If not now, when?

Short of getting the words ‘speculate to accumulate’ tattooed on his forehead, Rodgers can’t have been any clearer about what he’d like to see next.

They will spend, but will they spend wisely? And how daring will they be?

In domestic terms, Celtic are good enough to win a fourth title in a row just as they are, but parochialism is the enemy of progress. If beating Rangers is all that you’re about then it’s a comfort zone you’re living in – and Rodgers doesn’t want to live in a comfort zone.

The month ahead, before the transfer window closes, represents a chance for Celtic to sign a level of player (nobody is expecting superstars) that will not just put more green water between themselves and their city rivals, but also give them a better shot at improving their European performance, which has been utterly dismal for too long.

The new Champions League format has an increased number of games and a single 36-team group. Celtic will likely have a few more winnable games, but what’s winnable in Celtic’s Champions League world?

Under Rodgers they have played 19 group games in the Champions league, winning two, drawing four and losing 12. They’ve scored 15 and have conceded 49. They’ve won 10 points from a possible 54.

For a club that talks about its European story it’s time they added some new and cheerier chapters.

That goes back to improving the team, not just with Rangers in mind. Celtic will almost certainly win the Premiership and could win it by a large margin, but the big question is what else are they going to do?