Rangers thought they had the title race by the throat on Wednesday night. Leading 1-0 at Fir Park against ten-man Motherwell with quarter of an hour left while Celtic were being held by Livingston, Philippe Clement’s side were ready to go level on points. Then two things happened in the space of minutes that turned the Scottish Premiership upside down again.
First, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain smashed home a debut winner for Celtic at Parkhead. Moments later, Celtic loanee Stephen Welsh rose highest at the back post to head Motherwell level against Rangers. Game over. Two points dropped. Title momentum stalled.
Stephen Welsh Becomes Instant Celtic Cult Hero
The 25-year-old defender is on loan at Motherwell until the end of the season. Yet when he powered that header past Jack Butland in the 83rd minute, three sets of fans celebrated at once: Motherwell fans, Celtic fans, and probably every neutral who loves Old Firm chaos.
Social media exploded within seconds.
One Celtic supporter wrote: “Build the man a statue tomorrow. Agent Welsh just did more for this title race than half our January signings.”
Another posted: “Stephen Welsh has just secured legend status forever. Loan him out, he comes back with three points gift-wrapped for us. Unreal.”
Even Motherwell fans joined in the fun, chanting “Stephen Welsh, he plays for you” at the travelling Rangers support as they left Fir Park shell-shocked.
Hotline Lights Up as Rangers Fans Rage
The Daily Record Sports Hotline took calls all Thursday morning and it was pure theatre.
One Rangers caller fumed: “We had ten men to play against and still couldn’t win. This team has no bottle when it matters.”
Another insisted: “Celtic are getting every decision again. Welsh knew exactly what he was doing. That’s not coincidence.”
The comeback was swift and brutal.
A Celtic regular fired back: “You lot were crowing about going top five minutes ago. Now you’re greeting because a Celtic player on loan did his job for Motherwell. Delicious.”
Someone else simply said: “Agent Welsh reporting for duty. Mission accomplished.”
The Bigger Picture: Four Points Swung in Ten Crazy Minutes
Let’s be clear what actually happened.
If Rangers had held on for the win and Celtic had drawn, the gap would have been cut to one point with a game in hand for Rangers.
Instead, Celtic now sit four points clear with 13 games to play.
That is a massive swing on a single February night.
Rangers have dropped 14 points from winning positions already this season. Celtic have turned one point into three on seven separate occasions when trailing or level in the final 15 minutes.
Those are the numbers that win titles.
Clement’s Men Running Out of Lives
Philippe Clement was honest after the game.
He said: “We controlled it for long periods, but we switch off once and we get punished. That’s the story of our season in too many games.”
The Rangers boss now faces Hearts on Sunday knowing another slip and the gap becomes seven points. Do that and even the most optimistic Rangers fan will admit it’s over.
Across the city, Brendan Rodgers will let his players enjoy this one. They know the job is far from done, but nights like Wednesday remind everyone why this fixture never loses its magic.
Stephen Welsh woke up Thursday morning still technically a Motherwell player. By lunchtime he was trending nationwide and having statues designed in his honour by Celtic fans.
Football, bloody hell.
What a game. What a league. What a night to be Scottish.
Tell us in the comments: Does Agent Welsh deserve a place on the Celtic heroes wall already? Or are Rangers still right in this fight? Drop your thoughts below.
