Gordon Strachan – very good or just very lucky?

A dreadful December which has seen Celtic haemorrhage valuable points in this season’s close title race arguably brings the ability of manager Gordon Strachan back into sharp focus – and this is despite an impressive roll-call of achievements since he joined the club in June 2005.

He can boast of back-to-back championship wins and, with a Champions League encounter with Barcelona to look forward to early next year, back-to-back appearances in the last 16 of Europe’s elite competition. However, for some Celtic supporters there is a nagging doubt that has never really gone away – just how good is the current Celtic manager?

On paper, his achievements are going to go down in Celtic’s illustrious history and every supporter of the club is grateful for the fact that titles are being added to the long list of honours. However, the bigger picture has to be considered as it looks like it is all going to come to boiling point this season – and the fall-out may not be pretty! Let’s take a look at Gordon Strachan’s first two seasons in charge:

Season 2005/2006

The league title is won with a comfortable six matches to spare and all seems rosy in the Celtic garden. However, even as a supporter looking back on this achievement, it should be remembered that Rangers presented a non-existent challenge whilst Hearts imploded spectacularly after a fine start. That said, you simply beat what is in front of you and it was job done as far as trophy collecting was concerned, with the League Cup added for good measure.

On a cautionary note, this was also the season of the European debacle against Artmedia Bratislava – a record 5-0 defeat ultimately putting paid to any European ambitions with an embarrassingly early exit. In addition, the less said about Celtic’s Scottish Cup exploits the better, with an ignominious exit in the third round at the hands of First Division Clyde.

One of the most enthralling matches of the season took place at Tynecastle on January 1, 2006, when Hearts took on Celtic, with four points separating the two sides at the start of play. Hearts raced into a 2-0 lead after less than 10 minutes but ultimately succumbed 3-2 in spectacular fashion – Stephen McManus scoring an 87th minute equaliser before slotting home an even later winner. A pivotal moment in this season certainly but perhaps also establishing the penchant for late winners that Gordon Strachan’s Celtic would become renowned for.

Season 2006/2007

Ah, the year of Paul Le Guen and the much vaunted Rangers revolution – that disappeared to dust in less than half a season! Le Guen and his backroom staff lasted a mere 31 games as Rangers disintegrated, leaving the way clear for Strachan’s team to coast to the title – and perhaps it was a good job, as this was a Celtic side that had built up a huge points advantage early on in the season and then seemed just to drift towards clinching the championship. It is hard to assess a team when the opposition is so far behind, but it remains that Celtic won just three out of their last nine league games (a sequence that included two Old Firm defeats).

The Scottish Cup was secured (providing Strachan with his fourth trophy in two years) by dint of a 1-0 victory over relegated Dunfermline Athletic. Tellingly, the winner came just five minutes from the end of normal time in a poor quality final at Hampden Park.

And so to the current season and the development of a title chase which sees Celtic and Rangers slugging it out in a close fight where, on a game by game basis, the Hoops seem to be handing more and more impetus to our Glasgow rivals. The Ibrox side will come out of their forthcoming encounter with Aberdeen knowing that even if they had spilled all the points at Pittodrie they would still have two games in hand to overhaul Celtic and take the lead in the title race.

In each of Strachan’s first two seasons in charge Celtic have undeniably done well but have also won championships without a sustained challenge from anyone else for the bulk of the season. As the Scottish Premier League heads into the New Year a fascinating duel awaits and, if current form persists, one that will not necessarily be pleasant viewing for Celtic fans. The eagerly anticipated Old Firm derby on January 2 will be of monumental significance – it is highly likely that both teams could go into the game level on points (Rangers’ advantage being a crucial two extra games in hand)

In that context the game will be a real test of Strachan’s managerial capabilities. He will have to rouse a side that, after the 1-1 home draw with Hibernian, has only one win from the last five league outings. It is also a side that has lost the last three Old Firm derbies by ever increasing margins (Rangers 1-0 and 2-0 victories at the tail end of last season being joined by a 3-0 victory at Ibrox back in October). Of course, there is a key Christmas period to negotiate as well and the beauty of football is that the situation can change in an instant.

As for the impending clash with Rangers in the New Year, would anyone be too surprised if a last-minute winner got Strachan out of jail yet again? In his time at Celtic, late winners have secured precious victories against a list of sides that includes AC Milan, Shakhtar Donetsk, Manchester United, Gretna, Hearts, Kilmarnock, Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Livingston amongst others. What price Rangers being added to the list of victims any time soon?