It’s advantage Rangers in the title race in more ways than one.
Not only has Steven Gerrard’s side managed to secure an early three point lead against their Old Firm rivals, but they have also managed to do what Celtic haven’t – not lose key players and strengthen their squad.
I’m sure that the Rangers board would have wanted to see a few more pounds coming in the door but Ross Wilson will have been working closely with them and will have known exactly what the acceptable fees were for in-demand players – that none of these valuations were met will have been music to the gaffer’s ears when the window “slammed” shut.
Across the city, however, it is an entirely different story. They have lost their captain, their best centre-half, their best striker and their best attacking midfielder and haven’t replaced any of them with superior quality.
Kyogo Furuhashi looks a very dangerous player, but, as we saw in his attempts to get past Leon Balogun in Sunday’s Old Firm, he can’t do it on his own and isn’t capable of the same sort of individual brilliance that Odsonne Edouard was – when he was interested anyway.
The psychological boost from retaining key players won’t be lost either, if you are sitting in a dressing room and some of your previous go-to men are missing, their will be a lack of belief, a belief that used to get them over the line week-after-week – how often did Edouard or Ryan Christie bail them out of trouble with late or spectacular goals?
The period between now and the winter break is going to be huge, Rangers need to put the foot down and turn an early lead into an unassailable one taking advantage of the opportunity that they have been presented with – Champions League football awaits the league winners, they will never have a better chance to mix it with Europe and the world’s best.