WHEN you set the bar so high then it can be difficult later on to reach it even on a good day.

This is why I was big advocate for a ‘there is no crisis at Celtic’ and I’m thinking I’ve a few believers more with me now.

Hey, I might possibly have been one of the few who were of that school of thought when some points were dropped here and there.

We are just into a quarter of the season and I always felt that when Celtic clicked into gear, as they have been doing, then this group of players would show how good they still were.

It also helps that Brendan Rodgers is not being linked with every single manager’s job on the face of the planet.

That talk has settled down, thankfully, and I’ve stopped reading and listening to absolute nonsense about Celtic being in a crisis – they never were – and the manager was never on the verge of leaving.

I always felt they would start winning again and to do it so brilliantly on Sunday without Leigh Griffiths, the club’s top scorer, and the captain Scott Brown, plus Dedryck Boyata was suspended for the Hearts semi-final, says to me that this is a team going in the right direction.

The injured players will come back soon enough. Brendan will get to spend some of the Moussa Dembele money in January, and I can see a couple of players coming in, the Celtic will kick on and I have every faith that they will go on and win title number eight this season.

It was a case of getting through a really tough period. European football, with all that entails, has been an issue and there were the defeats at Hearts and Kilmarnock, which can happen, and it was impossible for Celtic to keep up that level of performance for three years.

And Sunday, for me, told you everything about where the team are.

Hearts must have felt good about themselves. They were in their own city, 30,000 Jambos were there backing them and this is their best team in years.

However, Celtic are a big game team. Murrayfield, ironically, played into their favour. The players are used to huge crowds and big pitches. I knew James Forrest would get a lot of space, as did all of Celtic’s wide players. The home of Scottish rugby suited the Glasgow Bhoys.

Odsonne Edouard was strong all afternoon. Okay, he didn’t score but I was impressed by his running, work-rate and link-up play.

It would have been five or six by the end. And I can’t see anyone stopping Celtic now.

There were supporters getting a bit panicky. I do sort of get why. It’s not as if Brendan and the board were getting on especially well. We all know he didn’t get some of his summer targets – John McGinn being one – but I always felt that once they go over that difficult period they would be fine.

Now, every club has a wobbly stage of the season. The difference at Celtic is they are not really allowed to and any tiny problem is multiplied ten-fold.

The manager knows what to do. He has the best players in the country. Everything was always going to be okay.

I was really pleased with Ryan Christie and how he came on and changed the game, along with Scott Sinclair who I speak about elsewhere.

Ryan is 23 now so if he is going to make it at Celtic then it has to be now.

He was loan back to Inverness Caley Thistle after signing and then spent two spells at Aberdeen.

Now is the the time for him to step up.

And if he can build on winning a penalty, and it was a pen, the first goal which will be credited to him and then that excellent striker...it would help his manager hugely.

I'm not sure Brendan has always trusted his fringe players; however, if Ryan can come in and play like he did, then he can play a huge part over the rest of the season.

We need all the squad players to make a contribution if this triple Treble, which is very much on by the way, is to be achieved.

It was interesting to hear the manager go out his way to praise Ryan. Brendan is intelligent in his interviews and when he sung the praises of Ryan Christie, there was a point to that.

He rarely singles out individuals but was gushing over the lad from Inverness, saying he had a goal in him and that he drove on his team.

Ryan is clearly rated and sometimes players mature later than others.

I actually thought he did okay in Leipzig. Sure, it was a difficult night but Ryan did some nice things.

I've a feeling the Celtic fans will see a lot more of him from now on.