'Healthy anxiety' helps Postecoglou's Celtic hit 250

Oh Hyeon-Gyu rolls in Celtic's 250th goal under Ange Postecoglou to make it 5-1 against St Mirren

For a brief moment during Celtic's win over St Mirren, a tiny dose of doubt crept in as to whether Ange Postecoglou's side might suffer a similar fate as to their last visit to Paisley, their only domestic defeat this season.

That didn't last long. Celtic's answer was emphatic and a measure of the progress and continuous development the manager extracts from this squad.

Yes, Celtic were assisted by Charles Dunne's momentary lapse in concentration and red card that ripped St Mirren's effective game plan apart.

However, that word squad is key.

• Celtic put five by 10-man St Mirren
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• Reaction & as it happened

Pre-match, Postecoglou emphasised his view there is too much focus on starting line ups.

Celtic started with the same 11 who took to the field in the Viaplay Cup final. Postecoglou introduced exactly the same players from the bench.

Their impact was telling as the game flipped from 1-0 down to 5-1 up.

"We always know in these kind of games, whether it's 10 or 11 men, we'll overrun the opposition," the Australian explained.

"Again, a really good impact from the guys coming on, I thought they were outstanding.

"It doesn't matter what the opposition are doing and what the context of the game is."

That's 250 goals under Postecoglou in just under 100 competitive matches. It equates to an average of almost exactly 2.5 goals a game. That relentlessness is reaping consistent and emphatic reward.

There were five different scorers in Paisley, including from two new recruits in the form of Alistair Johnston and Oh Hyeon-gyu . But this is nothing new.

This season Celtic have had 19 different scorers in the Premiership, the highest number of any club. That's four above title rivals Rangers, and 10 more than Kilmarnock at the bottom of the pack.

"It would've been very easy say at 3-1, for us to just cruise through the rest of the game but it's not who we are," said the Celtic manager. "We're going right to the final whistle."

'It's like a healthy anxiety'

Going back even further, since the Australian's arrival in Scotland, the league stats simply don't lie. They've earned 13 points more than Rangers, racked up six more wins, 35 extra goals, and have conceded nine fewer.

"I'm not sure it's a pressure, it's like a healthy anxiety but a good one," explained Jota.

"We already know all the situations of the game, the timings, when there's a back four, back five, what to do if they press us high.

"We have been working on our game since the beginning of our adventure one and a half years ago. We are just so used to what to do in the pitch.

"We have our strength. We just adapt. Our idea of the game didn't change."

This outcome is no fluke. There appears to be absolute buy-in from the squad, even those not starting. A belief in their process that is continuously working right now.

Against St Mirren, most players off the bench took their chance with Liel Abada making a big impact, Matt O'Riley netting and Oh showing another glimpse of his potential.

"He (Ange) just keeps getting better, it's not plateaued since he arrived at the club and if you listen to his interviews, he's not one to rest on his laurels is he?" asked Sportsound pundit Steven Thompson.

"He's going to keep pushing these players and if you're not cutting it, you're out the door.

"You can only see them getting better, which is a pretty frightening prospect for the rest of the Scottish Premiership."