Leigh Griffiths rubbed salt into some old Ibrox wounds as he recalled Celtic’s incredible 5-1 demolition of the Rangers away at Ibrox.
It is never easy to swallow a derby defeat, let alone one in which you let in 5 goals against your cross-city rivals. And if that happens at your own home ground, it is probably a defeat that you will never fully get over. That is exactly what Celtic inflicted on the Rangers when they beat them 5-1 away at Ibrox, three years ago on this day.
Celtic were absolutely ruthless on the day, putting five past their rivals on the day. Sinclair opened the scoring from the penalty spot after Roberts was brought down in the box. Griffiths then extended the lead with a rocket of a strike. McGregor, Boyata and Lustig scored after the break to pile on Rangers’ misery. Miller did score one for the hosts, but that cannot be considered much of a consolation?
Clearly Leigh Griffiths is the type of player who lives for games like the derby. And he would have been dissappointed to have missed out at the opportunity to face them in March after the season was forced into suspension just before Derby Day. The striker had scored a hattrick leading up to the game and would have fancied his chances to find the back of the net again.
He does have fond memories of that 5-1 victory, having scored a sensational strike on the day. And he even appears to regret the fact that the Hoops did not put more past a weak Rangers side. Speaking with Celtic TV, he said:
"“At Ibrox, I think the 5-1 scoreline was flattering for them, because the amount of chances we missed in the first half was ridiculous.“It could have been five at half-time. But to go to your rivals in their own back yard and beat them 5-1, as easily as we did, I think that was a day for the fans that they’ll never forget.“For me as well, going there and winning 5-1 so easily, it’s one of the best games I’ve ever played in.”"
It will be some time before football is back again. Until then we have to hold on to memories of games such as these. And hopefully the Hoops are back on the pitch soon, creating new memories for the fans to cherish for the rest of their lives.