There is no doubt that Celtic are struggling at the moment. They have won just two of their previous five games in the league. That is not the sort of run that you expect from the Hoops. The fact that they have not faced the Rangers in any of those matches raises further questions about Brendan Rodgers' side.
The Hoops were in a comfortable position in the league not too long ago and most fans, of both Glasgow teams, had accepted that Rodgers' team were going to cruise their way to the league title. That is clearly not going to be the case.
If the Rangers win their games in hand, they will actually be the ones leading the title race. Nobody could have seen that coming a couple of months back. But that's how quickly things change in football.
Neil Lennon does not appear to believe that there is a reason to panic though and has compared the situation to that of Manchester City. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, the former Celtic manager told PLZ Soccer:
"Rodgers will look forward to the challenge.
“There is no question there is a title race on. Sometimes that’s what you want as a neutral.
“There’s nothing come to me that says ‘Celtic can’t win the league’. They are just going through a bad run, at the minute. But because the bar has been so high for so long. A little blip, or maybe more than a little blip like this, it’s something the fans aren’t used to. But it’s part of football.
“I was down at the Etihad, they won the Treble last season. They have one game in five. They were 2-0 up (against Crystal Palace). Drew 2-2. Fans came off and there was a little bit of unrest.
“But there is an acceptance there that the manager has the team to sort this out. I feel it’s the same with Celtic."
Celtic sent Manchester City message amid struggles
There is a difference between Guardiola's situation at Manchester City and Rodgers' at Celtic though. The Spaniard has delivered success there year after year, winning the Treble last season.
Yes, Rodgers has been successful at Celtic as well, but not in this spell. While his earlier successes will give him a bit of a cushion for sure, questions are now being asked of the manager.
And let's be honest, Rodgers is not facing nearly the same level of competition in Scotland. Celtic are expected to win every game that they play, except for arguably the away trip to Ibrox. Yes, it might be a bit too early to panic just yet, but things need to improve soon.