Four wins on the spin has Ange Postecoglou beaming with pride as clear signs his style is taking root at Celtic begin to shine through.

A first-half performance of relentless, swashbuckling intensity was prime in the manager's thoughts but that did not detract from his unwavering belief that the club must continue to strengthen his hand.

Here's what Postecoglou spoke about with the media after the 3-2 League Cup win over Hearts.

Postecoglou on transfers to the written press: "I keep saying it, we need more players to support the ones we have. It was great getting James (McCarthy) some game-time.

“Some of them are putting in enormous shifts with some playing 90 minutes and others 70 minutes.

“The mistakes don’t have to happen but, unfortunately, that’s the position we’re in at the moment.

“Hopefully getting a few more players in will allow us to maintain the standard for 90 minutes.”

This was the latest in a series of reminders to his superiors at the club that good results and impressive performances do not mean the need for reinforcements is any less stark. Postecoglou hasn't been shy about reiterating this message since arriving and yet still finds himself with only one option at right-back and a lack of depth in central defence. Another massive European game is in the offing without these problems having been solved. With the league campaign holding the promise of automatic Champions League qualification for the titlists, they must be - and soon. 

Postecoglou on the performance against Hearts to Premier Sports: "The scoreline is the scoreline, our football for the first 60 minutes was outstanding. 

"Especially in the first half, it was as good as we've played all year. We didn't get the rewards for that, some of it was self-inflicted, we had some good chances we didn't take and others were good saves.

"It was great to see because we're in the middle of a heavy schedule. We're relying on the same core of players but they're putting in a good shift.

READ MORE: Celtic gain Hearts revenge as Ange Postecoglou's football philosophy pays dividends - Tony Haggerty

"I've said a few times, my old man is up there somewhere.

"He was the one, if I could get him excited with the teams I was producing then that was enough for me. And I think he would have been pretty pleased with what he saw in the first half."

There's no doubting Postecoglou's sincerity when he talks of producing the type of football his father would like to see. For the Celtic manager to reference this in relation to the first-half display speaks volumes about how proud he was with the way in which the players went about their business. Again, even amongst the praise, the 55-year-old manages to get in a wee reminder that the workload he's placing on his core group of players would maybe not be the case if he had more options at his disposal.

Postecoglou on injuries to CelticTV & BBC Sportsound: "With a bit of luck Liel Abada should be alright and we'll see how Ryan (Christie) recovers from his knock but getting Liel back will be a positive for us. 

"(Christopher Jullien) is working hard. He’s still very much on an individual programme.

“We have to be careful with these long-term injuries. We want to get him back as best we can and for him to feel really comfortable.

"He’s still got a bit of rehab to do so it’ll be a little while before we see him, but we can’t wait to get him back.”

The absence of Abada and Christie - two pivotal weapons in Postecoglou's arsenal over the past few weeks - did not impact the Hearts match in terms of result but having options such as those available when the game reached its latter stages would have been a considerable stress-reliever for the manager. Having one or both back in the squad for the AZ game would be a massive boost. When it comes to Jullien, it sounds as though Postecoglou is putting the emphasis on getting his recovery right rather than getting it done quickly; a sound strategy for the player and the club most would agree.