Football doesn't do entitlement
Celtic supporters have gorged themselves on the delights of watching Rangers stagger from one embarrassment to the next for the last two years.
They dined out on Joey Barton's consummate failure to live up to his own hype after he boasted that he would be the best player in Scotland following his move to Rangers from Burnley.
Then they made a three course meal out of Mark Warburton's pantomime retreat from the manager's office at Ibrox.
"I didn't resign," he said.
"Oh, yes, you did," replied Dave King, Rangers' owner, in a lengthy statement which hinted at duplicity and an attempt to use Rangers as a stepping stone to bigger things elsewhere.
Then came the icing on the cake for dessert with the arrival of the former bullfighter who had a habit of goring himself with self-inflicted wounds, Pedro Caixinha.
The Portuguese provided a staple diet of moments to savour for a joyous Celtic support as they took a knife and fork to Rangers' reputation on the back of league wins, cup wins and the biggest away victory at Ibrox for 120 years.
Rangers couldn't even ditch Pedro and bring in his intended replacement without suffering an own goal at the eleventh hour when Aberdeen's Derek McInnes refused to leave Pittodrie for the club he had supported since youth and whose shirt he had once worn.
In summary, it was, up until that point, a story of one-sided rivalry which took Rangers' following to the brink of despair and transported Celtic's fan base to new heights of ecstasy as they made a mental note to celebrate a history-making ten league titles in a row in 2021.
But now, for the first time since a Scottish Cup semi-final defeat from Rangers convinced the Celtic hierarchy to be rid of Ronny Deila and pay Rodgers a king's ransom to be the master of all he surveyed on a domestic basis something unexpected has happened.
Rangers, as led by the estimable Graeme Murty, have found a team capable of giving Celtic a game that is not a foregone conclusion.
Tipping the outcome of a match involving Rangers and Celtic is, for people in my line of work, is the quickest way to attract abuse, ridicule and general un-pleasantness.
But on the basis that it is all water off an old duck's back, I shall go the whole hog and offer the opinion that Rangers will beat Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday.
The people who have enshrined me as the world's worst tipster will now be split into two distinct groups.
The Celtic supporters will mock that prediction as the demented ramblings of an old codger with a lengthy list of previous when it comes to being unable to tip a baby out of a pram.
The Rangers fans will feign mock outrage and claim the prediction has been made in the fervent hope that it is wrong.
This is the world we inhabit and it is always best to ignore the white noise and carry on by explaining yourself.
Murty has accumulated more points than Rodgers since being given the manager's job on an interim basis until the end of the season, thirty-seven to Brendan's thirty-five.
He is an astute coach who has built a side which looks at its best when going forward and scoring at regular intervals.
Celtic's achilles heel is a defence that is not to be trusted.
Rangers, if they maintain current momentum and reap the benefits of playing on their own ground, can reduce the deficit between the clubs to a mere three points at the top of the league table.
A gap like that, with eight games left to play (nine in Celtic's case) constitutes what most people would accept as a title race.
Except, that is, for the caller to Superscoreboard who said I was a "Fantasist" for even suggesting the idea.
But be fair.
How can that possibly be a valid accusation if Rangers win on Sunday?
I am the one who championed the expression "For as long as Brendan Rodgers is Celtic's manager then Rangers will live in Celtic's shadow."
And I will be able to say that statement is accurate until the day when Rangers relieve Celtic of the league title and render the words un-true.
But at no time did I say that Rangers would never be able to beat Celtic in a one-off match during Rodgers' reign.
So, taking next weekend's match in isolation, I believe Murty, with two draws against Celtic on his c.v., can record a victory.
The Celtic fans decry the very notion of that happening because Rangers have been like a boxer on the ropes unable to defend himself properly for the last two years.
Of course defeat is an indigestible notion when you've gorged yourself on your rivals' ineptitude for so long.
But that doesn't mean it can't happen.
Tides turn. The menu can change for a day. And football doesn't do entitlement.
And if I'm wrong then you'll all know where to get me