SOCCER The decision by Rangers to sell Jean-Alain Boumsong to Newcastle the moment the transfer window opened came back to haunt them at Parkhead.
Boumsong had shown in previous Old Firm encounters that he could handle the imposing combination of John Hartson and Chris Sutton, and the fact that they scored a goal apiece yesterday suggests Rangers missed him badly.
On the other hand, Celtic's success in tying Hartson to a new deal was repaid with an initial instalment of a winning goal.
The contrast in fortunes was glaring and it was probably the difference between the teams as Celtic progressed through this Scottish Cup third-round tie.
In a poor match that never looked like exploding the way the last game between the sides did at Ibrox, only a Fernando Ricksen goal just after half-time offered Rangers the hope that they could at least force a replay.
Otherwise, Celtic always looked likelier as they stuck to their trusted formula of supplying their front pair with passes from Alan Thompson. Although that can have been no surprise for the visitors, finding a way to deny Sutton and Hartson is never easy.
They combined for both goals. The first after 36 mundane minutes was primitive in its construction. Rab Douglas launched the ball forward, Hartson got a touch ahead of Zurab Khizanishvili and Sutton nipped in before Marvin Andrews to slide the ball home.
The second, after 76 minutes, came from a Didier Agathe cross, a Sutton touch and a Hartson strike at the back post as he peeled away from Andrews.
In between, Ricksen's header from an Alan Hutton cross after 47 minutes was all Rangers could muster. Rangers manager Alex McLeish bristled at suggestions that Boumsong might have made a difference.
"There is no guarantee we would have won if Jean-Alain had been playing," he said. "I'm not pointing the finger at individuals, although we lost basic goals.
"Hartson and Sutton are quality strikers and Celtic pushed the boat out to keep John. They're cute and the kind of free-kicks they win have haunted us for four years. They can score goals and have troubled bigger and better clubs than us."
McLeish confirmed his continuing interest in the Liverpool defender Stephane Henchoz, but rubbished persistent speculation linking Barry Ferguson with a return to Ibrox from Blackburn.
The two players the Rangers manager recently signed - Bojan Djordjic from Manchester United, who started, and the former Feyenoord player Thomas Buffel, who appeared as a substitute - both made an impact and the latter could have won an immediate place in the hearts of his club's fans had he scored with a late chance.
Instead, they had to look on as Celtic celebrated what their manager Martin O'Neill considered a deserved win.
"That is the first pay-off from the Hartson deal," said O'Neill smiling. "I felt we had the better chances and I'm delighted with the victory. It's true both Hartson and Sutton are strong and physical, but they can both play as well."
O'Neill refused to become embroiled in any verbal sparring over McLeish's assertion that his strikers were "cute" and merely observed: "I think Rangers, too, have players who are cute and we certainly don't have a monopoly on getting free-kicks."
Guardian Service
CELTIC: Douglas, McNamara, Balde, Varga, Laursen, Agathe, Petrov, Thompson, McGeady (Camara 84), Sutton, Hartson. Subs Not Used: Marshall, Juninho Paulista, Lambert, Wallace. Booked: McNamara, Hartson. Goals: Sutton 37, Hartson 77.
RANGERS: Klos, Hutton, Khizanishvili, Andrews, Vignal, Namouchi (Thompson 81), Ricksen, Alex Rae, Djordjic (Buffel 67), Prso, Novo. Subs Not Used: McGregor, Malcolm, Ball. Booked: Namouchi, Ricksen. Goals: Ricksen 47.
Attendance: 58,622.
Referee: H Dallas (Scotland).
