Rangers ruin Barnes' birthday

Rangers invited Celtic round to their place for lunch but, in reality, they had them for breakfast. In doing so they ruined the 36th birthday of John Barnes and left him exposed to a section of supporters who believe he is the wrong man in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The champions opened up a significant lead in the Premier League, but it was the cultured way they overcame their errors to win with ease which will grate for weeks on those Celtic fans. Barnes will have been a lonely man last night.

He lives in the leafy suburb of Milngavie and before the game claimed that such surroundings protected him from the harsher aspects of Glasgow life. "They have adopted me out there, even the Rangers fans," he said. The Celtic manager can expect some big smiles in his local Tesco from a part of the community whose natural home is Ibrox.

"I am disappointed, so are the players and the fans who have to go into their workplaces tomorrow. We must pass the ball better - and for 90 minutes. There might be a case for playing four hardworking midfielders and two 6 ft 5 in strikers, but at the moment we play with what we have got and that is people who can pass." Barnes said, in little more than a whisper.

Celtic managed to stay level at half-time, but when Rangers tightened up at the back after the interval only one result was possible and the frailness of the Celtic defence against their sweeping attacks grew the longer the match lasted.

Celtic could have done without losing Paul Lambert as he slid into a tackle that gave Rangers their penalty - the turning point of the game. He went to hospital minus a good few teeth, and Craig Brown will trust he finds a good orthodontist in time for England at Hampden Park on Saturday.

As usual in an Old Firm game the goals were a matter of incident rather than the culmination of overall play. Jonatan Johansson had hit the bar before Rangers took the lead in the 19th minute when Jorg Albertz's long throw bobbled off a Celtic head straight to the less than impressive goalkeeper Jonathan Gould, who spilled it for Johansson to supply the finishing touch.

Celtic, though, equalised when Eyal Berkovic took advantage of a bad Giovanni van Bronckhorst back-pass and played the ball into Mark Viduka. The Australian played it back to the Israeli who passed into the net through the legs of the goalkeeper Stefan Klos.

They then went ahead courtesy of the Rangers captain Lorenzo Amoruso who occasionally gives the impression that half his mind is on what bottle of chianti should accompany the pasta. He gave the ball to Viduka, who broke away before laying it to Berkovic for his second.

But the defining moment came deep in first-half injury time. Albertz broke forward, Lambert came across to challenge and the German dropped under the weight of his sliding tackle. With the Celtic player already booked there was a case for sending him off, but the referee allowed substitute Johan Mjallby to come on.

Rangers began to mop up the match three minutes in to the second half when, after an Alan Stubbs foul on Van Bronckhorst, Amoruso redeemed himself with a crushing free-kick from 35 yards. The ball deflected off Ian Wright in his only contribution to affairs.

By the 66th minute, it was done and dusted for Rangers. Johansson supplied Gabriel Amato, who from the narrowest of angles clipped the ball into the net off the far post.

Dick Advocaat felt sufficiently comfortable to put on two new strikers, Gordon Durie and Neil McCann.

Rangers: Klos, Porrini, Moore, Amoruso, Numan, Reyna, Ferguson, Albertz, Van Bronckhorst (Vidmar 89), Amato (Durie 77), Johansson (McCann 77). Subs Not Used: Charbonnier, Nicholson. Booked: Van Bronckhorst. Goals: Johansson 19, Albertz 45 pen, Amoruso 49, Amato 66.

Celtic: Gould, McNamara, Stubbs, Tebily, Riseth, Burley, Lambert (Mjallby 45), Petrov (Blinker 57), Berkovic, Wright (Burchill 78), Viduka. Subs Not Used: Kharine, Moravcik. Booked: Burley, Lambert, Petrov, Gould, Blinker. Goals: Berkovic 21, 42.

Referee: K Clark (Scotland).