Ferguson makes Brendan Rodgers eat his words as former Rangers teammate slams Parkhead 'pop'
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Barry Ferguson taking his second big managerial scalp in a matter of days as the interim Rangers manager dumps Brendan Rodgers at Celtic Park.
Heading into the game, Rodgers had tried to stoke the Old Firm fire, promising a different Parkhead side from the one that was thumped 3-0 at Ibrox earlier in the season.
Within 37 minutes Celtic found themselves 2-0 down to a Rangers team fresh off the back of an exhausting 120 minutes against Fenerbahce.
But whilst Brendan Rodgers' team would mount a second half comeback, a spirited Rangers outfit would fight on to the very end with Hamza Igamane the hero on the day.
It's meant Rodgers' scalp has been added to that of Jose Mourinho, with support building behind Ferguson getting the Rangers manager's gig full-time.
It was also a special moment – and a rare one in Scottish football – where Celtic's manager and his self-indulgent ego was put in check.
Brendan Rodgers' pre-match Barry Ferguson comments backfire
Heading into the match, Rodgers had tried to claim some kind of responsibility for Philippe Clement's 3-0 victory back in January.
Rodgers claimed Rangers had played the way Celtic normally do in the fixture, with the Parkhead side smelling revenge ahead of this return clash in Glasgow's eastend.
A cocky Rodgers then went on to claim that Rangers hadn't changed much under Ferguson, ultimately dismissing suggestions the interim Rangers manager has had a sizeable impact.
“I don’t know Barry, but I know him as a player and I know that he’s gone in and he’ll have a great connection with his supporters,” Rodgers said, as quoted by BBC Sport.
“His history at the club, his success at the club – he was a fantastic player for them. For me, if I look purely at the coaching aspect of it, over the course of four games, I don’t see great change.
“I’ve seen the team change the system. Absolutely, a really good tactical change to go 5-4-1 at Fenerbahce. But I still see a lot of the same traits – some very good performances, some inconsistencies.”
Barry Ferguson makes Brendan Rodgers eat Old Firm words
The comments may well have added fuel to the fire for Barry Ferguson, who approached the trip to Celtic Park in a very different manner to recent Rangers managers.
Whereas some have approached the Parkhead clash with trepidation, Ferguson has embraced the challenge and asked his Rangers team to do the same.
"As a footballer, these are the games you’ve got to look forward to," Barry told the press ahead of the game. "As a manager, I can’t wait to go and sample it for the first time on the touchline."
It's led to a feeling that a cocky Rodgers might've underestimated Ferguson's impact and that's exactly what Ferguson's former Gers teammate Kris Boyd alluded to at full-time.
"Second half, you would expect Celtic to have a lot of the ball and penetrate Rangers – and that is exactly what happened, and Rangers were able to find a winner," Boyd told Sky Sports.
"But Rangers in the first half were excellent, take nothing away from them. Brendan Rodgers had a pop in terms of he has not really seen anything different – he has today."
Rodgers went on to single out two Rangers stars come full-time, taking his medicine after a second Old Firm defeat on the bounce.
