Celtic have recovered this Wednesday the Scottish champion crown that Rangers snatched from them, after nine consecutive seasons, last year. Their draw on the penultimate day against Dundee (1-1) has earned the ‘bhoys’ their 52nd Scottish league title, thus reducing the distance in the record to their eternal rival, who has 55 championships.
In his first season at the helm of Celtic, the virtually unknown Ange Postecoglu won the battle against his Rangers counterpart Gio Van Bronckhorst, who was also facing his first year at the helm of the other Scottish great. Known above all for his work in Australia, with which he made history by winning the Asian Cup in 2015, the ‘Catholic’ team’s bet on a coach with no experience in Europe has paid off.
This Celtic is a team without many names. Its best-known player internationally is Joe Hart, a goalkeeper who spent most of his career at City. and who was a starter for the England team for most of the past decade (75 caps). The footballer with the highest market value is its captain, Callum McGregor, who in addition to being the flag of this Celtic has become known in Europe thanks to his good performances with the Scottish team, which he helped qualify for Euro 2020 after being 21 years without participating in a major tournament. The Japanese Furuhasi, one of the four Japanese on the team (yes, four), is the goal man for this new and unrecognizable Celtic champion.
An inexperienced coach in Europe, a veteran goalkeeper, a captain representing home football, and a Japanese striker. An unexpected mix for an almost neighborhood team that was proclaimed European champion in 1967 with a full eleven born in a radius of 40 kilometers around Celtic Park. New foundations, unexpected, for a Celtic that returns to reign in Glasgow and Scotland.