Rangers 1-0 Celtic: Steven Gerrard's side have the battle fever on at Ibrox

In the weeks, days and hours leading up to kick-off in the second Old Firm showdown of the season, everything pointed to there being only one likely winner, one plausible outcome.

In the end, there was. It wasn’t the result many expected, but it was one that nobody could question. On a day they simply had to win, there was no way Rangers were going to lose.

The margin of victory may only have been the solitary goal that was scored by Ryan Jack, but that flattered Celtic hugely as Rangers outfought them all over the park. As the locals would say, this was a doing.

If Rangers had won by two or three, few of the 750 away supporters tucked away in the corner of Ibrox could have protested too much. Their presence was visible, but barely a sound they made reverberated around the stadium as the home crowd lapped up a performance that was as impressive as it was seemingly improbable.

Gerrard had always believed his players were capable of something like this but, from outside the Hummel Training Centre, there was little sign that it was possible on Saturday.

Rangers’ only consistency in recent weeks has been their inconsistency and the fact that Gerrard was without Borna Barisic and had to patch up Connor Goldson, Scott Arfield and Ryan Kent meant that it was hard to make a case for his side to summon something as special.

Where it came from, only Gerrard and his players will know. The challenge now is for them to replicate that week after week and really make Brendan Rodgers think as the finishing line draws nearer this term.

This may only have been one game, may only have been three points, but it felt far more significant than that for those that have suffered year in, year out as Rangers have tried, and so far failed, to return to the levels supporters are accustomed to seeing them at.

Gerrard dedicated the victory to those fans afterwards and it was no surprise that the 38-year-old and his players got caught up in the scenes at the final whistle. On and off the park, this was a united effort and they celebrated together.

Former players speak about leaving everything on the park and winning your individual battle in these fixtures. To a man, Rangers did just that.

Two contributions from Andy Halliday summed up this performance from Gerrard’s side and encapsulated just what the Ibrox boss expects and demands from his players.

The full-blooded yet perfectly timed tackle on Olivier Ntcham in the first couple of minutes set the tone for Rangers. The block from the Frenchman’s shot with just seconds to go won them the game.

It was Halliday that took home the Man of the Match champagne and none of his team-mates or his fellow supporters would have begrudged him the award. There were several contenders and it is difficult to separate so many fine performances, but Halliday’s Old Firm story made this latest chapter extra special.

The blows he has had to take in recent years have been significant but he has shown the mentality that Gerrard sought to add to the squad in the summer. His technical ability can be questioned, but his heart certainly can’t.

Supporters would have taken satisfaction from seeing Halliday perform as well as he did but there were no failures for Rangers as they made Celtic look ordinary at best.

The threat of James Forrest and Scott Sinclair was nullified to almost extinction by Halliday and James Tavernier, while Goldson was commanding as he played through the pain barrier alongside Joe Worrall, who turned in arguably his finest performance in Light Blue.

As Scott Arfield marked Scott Brown out of the game - and then mocked the Celtic captain - goal hero Jack and Ross McCrorie ran it in the middle of the park. Rangers have so often been second best in that area against Celtic but this was a masterclass from three players Gerrard had complete faith in.

In attack, Daniel Candeias and Alfredo Morelos will wonder how they never got a goal that their play deserved as they hassled and harried the Celtic defence and forced mistake after mistake from Rodgers’ side.

On the other flank, Kent dazzled with an array of tricks and flicks. A back injury forced Mikael Lustig off at half-time and saved the Swede a torrid second 45 minutes.

Kent had the speed and skill required to torment Celtic, but it was combined with a work ethic that was at the heart of everything that Rangers did.

This was a win earned through individual efforts but the collective was what made them as powerful and impressive. If teams mirror their managers, then this showing was typically Gerrard.

The aggression was controlled, the emotion was channelled. In the big moments, his big players stood up to be counted in the way he did for club and country.

This high-tempo, committed and attacking style was what Gerrard laid out in the summer and there was no better time than Saturday for his side to deliver a showing even better than the A grade one he had demanded during the week.

The points and the plaudits all belonged to Rangers as 13 proved lucky on this occasion and their wretched run in Old Firm fixtures came to a timely end.

The feelgood factor will course through the support for the duration of the winter break and will undoubtedly be topped up when signings are made and Gerrard adds to his squad once again.

Next week, the Gers boss will take his side for a few days in the sunshine to recover from what has been a hectic and at times mixed first half of the season.

Rangers have finished on the ultimate high. Now, they must pick up where they left off.