Ange has a shot at glory if board back him in January

ANGE POSTECOGLOU was dealt a really bad hand when he was appointed Celtic manager. The club had to get busy and he had to lead the rebuild. As soon as the Australian’s work permit came through and his quarantine was over, he rolled up his sleeves and got stuck in.

And the thing that strikes me is that he has never once complained. There was plenty going on that might have made him feel sorry for himself — players agitating to leave, staffing and structural issues at the club — but he stuck at it.

Postecoglou has succeeded in restoring a bit of confidence within the club and the wider support and he is clearly not short on belief in himself.

When taking a new job, most managers want to bring an entourage with them. Some would be willing to work with the current staff but it’s really unusual that they wouldn’t bring in at least one close ally. Someone who shares his method of working, a confidante who is always there as a sounding board.

The fact Postecoglou came in alone, and seems happy working with inherited staff like John Kennedy and Stephen McManus, suggests a real confidence in what he does. He’s had to suffer a wee bit along the way but there are now signs of stability. He does look good, to me he looks like a capable guy.

My take is that he is an idealist. I watched last weekend’s Premier Sports Cup semi-final against St Johnstone and he refused to change. All the substitutions were like for like. And it worked as Celtic capitalised on a goalkeeping error to claim James Forrest’s winning goal. Postecoglou has earned himself a place in a cup final, a chance to win his first trophy before the turn of the year. But, in January, he needs the Celtic board to back him.

Unless they make improvements, add more quality to the squad, then no matter how good he is, I just don’t see them having enough to wrest the title away from Rangers.

Celtic have always backed their managers and spent money. But looking at where the club was over the summer, there was no way they could address that in one window.

I’m pretty sure Postecoglou’s hand will have been strengthened by the work he did over the summer. The success of Kyogo Furuhashi, a player he identified from Japan, should give Celtic the confidence to give him the funds required, and perhaps return to that market.

This second window will let him reinforce a squad that would have benefited from that depth during the Europa League group stage. You saw that when he turned to the bench at Leverkusen’s Bay Arena on Thursday. With 20 minutes to go, Celtic led a good Bundesliga side away from home but the game slipped away following his decision to replace the front three.

Celtic don’t have another Kyogo type at centre-forward, underlined by Albian Ajeti coming off the bench. Wide right, Liel Abada has the potential to excite and score goals but he is not Forrest. And while this is a big season for Mikey Johnston, one in which he wants to put injuries behind him and be a main player, he can still only aspire to the levels Jota has shown.

Celtic have been really dependent on Kyogo in particular but he came here already deep into the Japanese season and has played a lot of football. In midfield, captain Callum McGregor also carries a huge burden. The team is so reliant on those two key players. They could do with two or three more of similar quality to maintain the standards and ease the load.

Today’s game against Aberdeen will be a test of the squad. The exertions of Thursday will have brought some fatigue and summoning a similar level of performance will be a challenge. That’s why Celtic and Rangers run with big squads.

I’d imagine Postecoglou will want to strengthen at left-back. I also feel they are a centre-half light and could do with another midfielder.

If they can get through a busy December period as close to Rangers as they are now, they will have that chance to strengthen and make for a real title fight.

Rangers deserve congratulations for nailing down second place in their Europa League group and qualifying for the next round. But while they also remain top of the Premiership, they have not played as well as they can and I expect them to improve.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst got off to a good start with Thursday’s 2-0 win over Sparta Prague but he will be looking to make his own alterations in January.

None of the summer signings were improvements on the starting XI that won last season’s title under Steven Gerrard. Instead, they bolstered the squad.

Celtic need to avoid doing that in January — they need to improve their starting XI, not just make signings for signings sake.

If today was January 31 and the window was closing then you would say Rangers are more ready to win the league. But, if Celtic land two or three who improve the team, it will get them closer. If the club is smart and supports the manager, find a couple more nuggets like Jota and Kyogo, it will be interesting.

It’s intriguing as both Postecoglou and Van Bronckhorst are really just in the door. That might place a much higher degree of importance on mid-season recruitment.

It will be fascinating to see how their respective boards decide to back them in the New Year.